Swallow Your Sleep
by flowerslut
Summary: Sakura knew that planning to kill a Kage wouldn't be easy, so abandoning her life was a price she was willing to pay to get the job done. But becoming a pawn in a game she wasn't ready to play had never been part of the plan. "You've always been so foolish, Sakura." Rated M for future content. SasuSaku.
1. Chapter 1

Green eyes assessed the room, studying its contents carefully, trying to make everything look the way it was supposed to: neat, orderly, with dirty laundry still in the basket in the corner of the room.

Her focus remained on her windows for a few longs seconds, staring at the curtains that she kept tightly shut. She knew that at one point over the past hour, an ANBU had passed by, carefully studying the houses, perhaps peeing into the windows, to make sure that everything was the way it should be.

Of course, if it had been a Hyuuga, she would've been found out already; her suspicious behavior certainly would've caused alarm and _Hokage-sama_ would've been alerted right away.

But she had to make sure that nothing looked out of place. So when she left her bedroom, her normal clothes on and her old, worn, backpack thrown over her shoulder, she knew it looked like she was simply going into the hospital for a late shift.

That's what she'd told her parents at least.

Her stomach churned when she thought of them. Their last conversation that had taken place at dinner that very night could very well be the last time she ever spoke with either of them. Now, they lay sleeping in their bed in the room across from hers.

She would've never been able to tell them anything, or to even _hint_ to them that something was awry or that she'd be going somewhere. If she'd wanted them to live, they'd have to remain entirely oblivious and ignorant to what she was planning.

She didn't want anyone else she loved killed.

Walking down the streets of Konoha, she quickly—but not fast enough to arise suspicion—made a bee-line for the main gates. Praying silently, luck finally came through for her when she didn't see a single familiar face the entire walk. With the gates in clear view, she knew it would only be a matter of minutes before she was out of the village and running far, far away.

Stopping before the front gates she politely smiled to the ninja sitting behind the desk off beside the road. He had a vaguely recognizable face; she could remember he was somewhat new, older than her by possibly ten years, and his sandy blonde hair and blue eyes almost reminded her of Naruto. For the life of her Sakura couldn't remember his name, but she greeted him politely anyways before approaching and informing him that she'd be back by sunrise—right after she knew his shift ended and someone else would take his place—and that she was just going to the gardens Konoha had that were located several miles east of the village, to retrieve some herbs.

He smiled right back at her, showing off the gap where a front tooth was clearly missing, before nodding and waving her off, after jotting a few notes down on a clipboard.

Yet before she could even turn away from him, breaking eye contact, she felt a presence immediately to her left. From the look on the ninja's face in front of her, she knew it was an ANBU. Her stomach churned once more as she recognized the look on the man's face as panic; _fear_.

"Pass please." The ANBU ordered in a stern, almost-nasally voice. Sakura frowned as the strange voice fell on her ears; of course she wouldn't recognize his voice. She'd never been in contact with a majority of any of the _root_ agents, with the obvious exception of Sai and the ANBU that now kept guard at the front of the hospital during the day time.

With compliance, she turned and handed the guard her perfectly-formulated excuse in the form of a small, yellow slip of paper.

"I'm going to the hospital's gardens. The ones east of the village. I should be back soon, I need to pick up herbs for my medical salves." She tapped her foot impatiently. "I have patients waiting that could have used some of this stuff _days_ ago," she did nothing to hide the annoyance in her voice, implying that it was due to the new, near-constant ANBU patrol and their need to stop and check-in with the ninja that roamed the village. 'For security purposes', they would also say, but Sakura knew better than that.

 _Hokage-sama_ didn't trust a single ninja who had worked under the Godaime.

Sakura knew this wasn't a random stop though; with her proximity to Tsunade, it made her a prime candidate to being tailed nearly day in and day out.

"It's past curfew," the ANBU informed her, handing her back the slip of paper.

Sakura rolled her eyes clearly, knowing that he'd see, and pocketed the pass. "Hence why I have special permission to leave the village," she said it clearly, as if an idiot could've figured that out. "The hospital never closes, and my shifts never really end. That's what happens when you're a medic. Now," she made a move to step around him, "if you'll excuse me…"

But as he blocked her path again, she halted, looking up at the mouse mask he hid his face with and managing a half-hearted glare.

He didn't say anything, he simply studied her, eyeing her up and down and even leaning towards her, only to loom over her for a few long seconds as he appeared to study the top of her head.

"Are you done?"

The man remained silent but eventually it was clear that his urge to end their exchange overpowered his need to stay and question her further. Instead of stepping aside, he became a blur as he launched himself upward and into the trees, disappearing into the night.

Sakura didn't even look back toward the ninja at the desk before she briskly walked away, through the gates, and away from the village.

As soon as the gates were out of sight, she began to run. And as she picked up speed she worked hard to keep her emotions—and ultimately her chakra signature—in check and under control. The last thing she needed was for an ANBU to leave the village and chase her down due to something as suspicious as that.

And when she was absolutely certain that she wasn't being tailed, she paused, turned West, and took off, _sprinting_ through the trees as fast as her legs could carry her.

Minutes turned to hours, and hours brought her the sunrise, the heat of the late summer, and determination for her to travel farther, faster, and to get out of Fire Country as quickly as possible. As noontime approached, her mind betrayed her and she found herself thinking back to her friends, who were undoubtedly awake now and beginning to realize that something wasn't right.

The ANBU certainly knew at this point that she wasn't coming back; had they dispatched teams to track her down yet? She couldn't know for sure. Possibly. And that fact only made her run faster, and push her body farther.

She'd sooner lie down in the dirt and die before she let them catch up to her and bring her back to Konoha.

With the goodbyes she'd never gotten to say still on her tongue, itching to be spoken, Sakura found herself blinking back tears as she bit her cheek, trying so hard not to think about her friends, her family, and her _teammates_ that would soon find out what she did.

The only solace she found was that thankfully, they did not know what she was _planning_ on doing. Keeping them all ignorant and completely blind to her plan; meaning they were safe from the Hokage's harm.

Or at least she hoped.

Letting out a frustrated cry, Sakura allowed herself to have a moment of weakness; she could only afford _one_. Releasing the tears she'd been keeping at bay for the past several minutes, she let the tears fly behind her where they would ultimately lay forgotten in the dense forests of Fire Country.

It had to be done, she knew. And she had to be the one to do it, or else the life as she knew it would never exist for her again.

* * *

Wiping sweat from her brow, she reached around and grabbed her canteen from her pack, flipping the top open and taking a swig of the cool water, before placing it back and continuing on.

Her forehead felt painfully bare as beads of sweat trickled down her face, attempting to cool off her body in the summer heat. But it wasn't something she could dwell on too much. After all, it wasn't as if she could've taken her headband with her, no matter how much it meant to her. No matter how much she loved her village.

By now, Naruto had certainly found it, carefully wrapped and placed at his doorstep.

He could hold onto it for when she returned, just like he was doing with Sasuke's.

Sakura then found herself, not for the first time since she'd left late the night before, thinking of her old teammate, friend, and the boy she fell in love with those years ago.

Although it was months ago, it seemed like just yesterday when they found him, Naruto, Sai, Captain Yamato and herself, camping out in one of Orochimaru's many hideouts. His voice still chilled her to the bone, as he spoke of sparring Naruto's life on a whim and severing the bonds he held with them.

And even so, she felt herself yearning, aching for him to come home so that the hole in her chest that his departure had left could begin to slowly heal. Now, it was still empty, filled with nothing but the sound of his goodbye to her—" _Sakura_ , _thank you_ ,"—echoing through.

The pain she felt in her heart was something she was used to experiencing, but that fact didn't make it any easier to bear.

As she stopped by a river, only long enough to fill her canteen, and submerge her head completely, effectively cooling her off, she wondered where he was at that very moment, and if he ever—even if rarely—thought about her in passing.

She hoped so, but didn't hold her breath.

* * *

She quite literally stumbled across her first checkpoint late that night.

For over 24-hours straight, she'd ran across the entire west side of Fire Country, crossing the border into Wind Country before sunset and beginning her trek upward toward Earth Country immediately after.

A part of her had wanted to first travel to Suna before going anywhere else. The urge to seek out the aide of Gaara and the Hidden Sand was overwhelming, but she forced herself to resist.

After all, knowing the way _Hokage-sama_ operated, he was likely to contact Sunagakure to tell them to keep an eye open for her. And she knew that the way tensions had been running high throughout the Five Great Nations recently—courtesy of the Akatsuki—hiding her from her home village, while struggling to keep relations from getting messy, would be at the bottom of their list of priorities.

So her plan was to lay low for the first month, stay under the radar, and when word of her leaving the village would pass by like old news, she would travel to Suna. In the meantime, she had to seek out allies; as many noteworthy and trustworthy people as she could scavenge up who knew of the current Hokage's past.

It wasn't an easy plan, and she only had two names—meaning two set stops—in her mental list prepared.

But before she could put any aspect of her plan into action, she needed to find a place to wait for the storm to fade away.

And with the moon in the sky, Sakura travelled over the border of Earth Country and with her cloak on, and hood up, she walked into the tiny village that rested in a valley between two cliffs.

The village was eerily quiet, and as she approached, she found herself on high alert, wondering where any of the people were; for a moment she found herself afraid. Pulling her hood tighter over her head, she worried that she was breaking some unknown rule by walking their streets alone at night, with no other hint of life in sight.

It took her several minutes to find the lone inn of the village and when she did, she was pleasantly surprised to find its door unlocked. Stepping inside, she had to squint her eyes to adjust to the thick darkness of the room. Eyeing a lit candle by what she assumed was the front desk, she approached slowly, hand hovering over her weapons couch.

She almost jumped when an old man stood up in the corner behind the desk, looking at her with stern, beady eyes, and holding a crooked, bony finger up against his grimacing lips.

He was very tall, towering over the counter which was, to her, chest-high. She would've been intimidated if perhaps he were ten, or even twenty, years younger; and maybe if he were a ninja.

"You're a dumb girl," his voice was shockingly deep, rattling her to her core after a long day on the road, "for being out this late tonight."

"I'm sorry," she licked her lips, feeling that they had grown extremely dry over the course of the day, "I'm not from here, I just need a place to stay for a little while."

"Clearly," he eyed her up and down, "how long?"

"Four days," she said, sliding money across the counter, "maybe more. But no less." A part of her wanted to ask him _why_. Why was it so bad that she was out that night in particular? Was it some sort of custom she was going against, or a law that she was breaking by walking the streets? But when he handed her a room key and mumbled the location of her room to her, she was too eager to lie down in bed to inquire any further.

She found her room with quick, yet lethargic feet, closing and locking the door softly behind her before she walked over to the bed. She didn't bother changing out of her clothes, nor did she take off her weapons pouch or even her boots.

She was well aware of the fact that if ANBU were to track her down and attack her, it would happen most likely within the first 72 hours of her disappearance. After that, the odds decreased dramatically with each passing day.

She'd been gone for over a day now, so all she had to do was sit on standby for another 48 hours while the ANBU ran around, searching for her.

It made her anxious to just lay still on a bed unfamiliar to her, but she knew that this village was a good choice; it was entirely out of the way of any of the Five Great Nations, and the only thing she knew about it was that it was prone to intense flooding during the beginning of the year. Of course since they were in the second half of the year, it wouldn't do either party any good, but Sakura had done well to make sure she was aware of the geological significance of the small town.

Anything to lessen the odds of ANBU searching the village, the better.

She was surprised when she had to just about force her eyes to close. She was exhausted from her non-stop travelling and had assumed that she'd be asleep within minutes of arriving and lying in a bed. But there were too many voices rattling around in her head, and too many faces she had left behind, reappearing before sleep only to haunt her.

Forcing the memories back, Sakura fell into a comfort-less sleep, bits and pieces of memories melding together with old nightmares to ensure that her rest would be difficult to achieve.

* * *

The sound of harsh winds rattling her window is what caused her to jump awake the following morning.

Kunai in her hand and wide eyes starring with panic toward the old, rickety window, Sakura urged her breathing to calm and her hands to stop shaking. It didn't help that she'd been woken directly out of a nightmare where she was running and fighting for her life from the ANBU that were certainly looking for her in some corner of the world right then.

As the window rattled again, she lowered her weapon and sighed, wiping away the nervous sweat from her forehead that she'd accumulated in her sleep. She was on high alert, and she didn't think her anxiety had ever been this bad before.

Even when the village had been attacked, she'd been high on adrenaline. But her adrenaline was starting to run out, and she found herself growing antsy and anxious more and more with each passing hour.

The reality of what she'd done was finally beginning to seep into her mind, and her fear began to set in.

What would her parents think? She was sure that by now they'd been brought in for questioning, and her house had most likely been thoroughly searched. They wouldn't find anything; no hints as to where she was, what had prompted her to leave, or what she was planning. They would find a relatively clean house and a somewhat tidy teenage girl's bedroom.

They'd probably already finished questioning them. Even if they'd had someone from the Yamanaka clan search through their minds, they'd still come up empty handed, knowing nothing more than before.

Her friends though…

She'd worked hard to keep them from her thoughts, and as images of Naruto, Ino, and even Kakashi-sensei flashed through her mind, she found herself standing up out of bed, humming along to some random tune, trying to drown out the thoughts.

Nothing that they said or did would have been able to keep her in the village. And even if they found her, perhaps waiting for ANBU to return to receive permission to look for her, they'd need to bring her back by force.

There was no way in hell she could return to her village and live peacefully under Danzo's reign. There was no way her conscience would allow it.

He'd murdered Tsunade, and Sakura was going to prove it, whether she had help or not.

* * *

 **A/N** : Welcome to my next project. Another lengthy SasuSaku fanfic. I've had this idea swimming around in my head for years now and have been putting off writing it ever since I joined the fandom, so I'm very excited to finally share it with you. It diverges from the main plot after the Pein arc, so it is an AU in a way.

Expect regular updates every two weeks.

And please review.


	2. Chapter 2

The dawn of her third morning in town, she finally emerged from her room at the inn, having remained entirely secluded during her stay, eating the remainders of the food she'd packed.

She showered and changed into unfamiliar clothes; dark shorts that clung to her thighs tightly, and a matching black shirt with sleeves that ended just past her elbows. She wore the same boots she'd left in—one of the few reminders of home she'd brought with her—and slipped on a pair of black gloves with holes where her fingers poked out of them.

Trying not to make it obvious that she was a ninja on the run, she slipped a red sweater over her shoulders, keeping it unbuttoned and wearing it loosely, so that it would hide her weapons pouch that she had strapped to her lower back.

Slipping out into the hallway, she quickly bounded down the stairs and approached the front desk. Instead of the tall, ominous man that had been there a few days before, a young man, perhaps not much older than herself, sat behind the counter, flipping through a magazine when she walked by.

He took a double take as he noticed her presence and quickly shoved the magazine under the desk.

"Wha—um," he cleared his throat, "how's it going? I mean, what can I do for you?"

If it weren't for her anxiety, Sakura would've found the fumbling over his words endearing almost. He wasn't half bad looking. Light brown hair, a decent smile, a nicely defined jawline—but for a split-second Sakura's thoughts went to Kiba and suddenly she wasn't smirking anymore.

"Can you tell me where your closest market is? I need to pick up a few items."

"Uh, sure. If you follow the main road and take the third left, you won't miss it."

She smiled widely, "Thank you." Before turning, pulling the hood of her sweater up and over her head, and walking towards the door.

The wind was the first thing she noticed as she left the inn; it was harsh, cold against her skin, and unrelenting. Pulling her sweater closed, she buttoned it quickly and pulled the sleeves over her hands, trying to hold back a shiver.

She knew what weather to expect, but somehow the chipper air had caught her off-guard. Perhaps her body was still searching for Konoha's summer heat that she'd left behind, and was having trouble adjusting to the frigid winds.

Stopping at a ramen stand, she couldn't help it when she ordered a bowl, sitting down and eating quietly yet quickly, trying to fill up her stomach and move on as fast as she could. She knew she shouldn't have indulged in something she _knew_ she would only do at home and with her friends, but despite the fact that she was trying not to think of them, she missed them.

Finishing her meal she stood and made her way toward the marketplace close by. It didn't take her long, and fifteen minutes later she was already making her way back toward the inn where she was staying. As she entered, she paused at the front counter.

"Excuse me?" She asked, watching as he once more put away the magazine he was reading and gave her his full attention. "Where did that man go? The one that was here a few nights ago?"

"You mean gramps? Super tall, super weird, old man?"

She couldn't help but smirk at the accurate description. "Yeah, that sounds like him."

"He works at night. Don't let him creep you out," he advised, smiling at her, "he's just a paranoid old man."

"Well, he said something about me being out late the other night. About not being smart because of it."

He raised an eyebrow, "What time did you get in?"

"I really don't know. It must've been before midnight."

"How many nights ago exactly?"

"Three."

"Sunday night?"

She thought back and shrugged, "I guess so." When his face paled, Sakura's eyes widened. "What? Why?"

His eyes flew to the door, and then the windows next to it. When he seemed to find what he was looking for—perhaps to see if anyone was there—he turned back toward her and lowered his voice. "It's dangerous to be out at midnight on Sunday's around here."

Sakura raised an eyebrow, "Okay?"

"No. Not 'okay'," he frowned at her dismissal. "Sunday nights are the only nights _they_ come."

"Who is 'they'?" a part of her wanted to end the conversation and simply retreat to her room in order to plan her next step, but a more powerful part of her wanted to stay and hear what paranoid thoughts this boy was about to share with her.

"They pass through maybe once a month or two, but they're dangerous. Sometimes it's two of them, sometimes three. They'll kill you where you stand, just because they can." He was whispering to her, as if they were children sitting in the dark, using flashlights to tell scary stories to one another over a fire. "I don't know where you plan on going from here—since you're clearly a stranger from these parts and all—but I really hope you get going soon. A pretty girl like you has no business being around here if they do decide to pass through."

Hiding her annoyance, she merely lifted an eyebrow, "Why? Do they prey on women?"

"Not really. They don't care who they kill though. Man, woman, old, young, if you get in their way, they'll kill you."

"And how many people have died from this? These people?" She asked, mildly curious. She hadn't heard anything about something like _this_ going on, back in Konoha. Granted, since this was Earth Country, it wasn't exactly within Konoha's jurisdiction, but she figured that someone—Tsunade, or Kakashi even—would've mentioned it offhandedly.

"Eight," he said grimly, a frown set deep in his features, "my younger brother's best friend was one of them. They were just goofing off, late at night, and started throwing stones at what they thought were some travelers; just stupid kid stuff y'know? I mean I don't think they should've been doing that, but to get killed for it?" He shook his head, crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned forward against the desk.

"Sunday nights you say?" Reaching into her pack, she pulled out some money. "I'd like to lengthen my stay by a few nights, please."

* * *

Walking back into her room, she threw the goods she'd bought onto the bed before stripping herself of her clothes; the wind had kicked up an insane amount of dust and had dirtied her up pretty badly, despite being out for less than an hour.

The boy almost didn't let her purchase the additional nights, but she had to assure him that it wasn't because of the story he told him, but because she genuinely needed a place to stay for the rest of the week.

Neither was a lie, but neither was the entire truth.

Just that morning she had been stressing out over not having her next step planned out fully, and having a week to shut down and figure things out would give her enough time to gather her bearings. That way, she would be able to travel without worry to her next destination.

But if there were people that were travelling through here and killing random children… Sakura just knew she couldn't let that go. Some days she wished her moral compass was broken, so that she'd be able to disregard people as easily as most ninja could. She could still recite every shinobi rule and law that she'd learned back during her Academy days, but now she knew how hard a number of them were to apply to actual practice.

She remembers one day, when she'd just begun her training with Tsunade, she'd mentioned it.

 _"I feel like I cry too much. I show too much emotion and it's going to get me killed 'cause I'm too weak to do anything about it."_

 _"What did you say?"_

 _Sakura blinked, "That I cry too much and—"_

 _"No, no." Tsunade had waved a hand, not looking up from the scroll she was reading closely. "After that."_

 _"About being weak?"_

 _"Ah, yes. Being weak." She finally lifted her golden eyes toward her. "Why would you say that? Is it_ because _you show emotion?"_

 _"Well, the rules say that—"_

 _"Rules shmules," Tsunade mocked, standing up from where she sat and walking around her desk, only to stoop to eye-level to Sakura. "Didn't that brat Kakashi talk to you guys about the 'rules'?"_

 _Sakura suddenly felt nervous, "He said that people who leave their comrades behind are worse than people who break the rules."_

 _"Good," she smirked, as if pleasantly surprised at the response she'd been given. "That's good. Just remember that."_

 _"But, the rules—"_

 _Suddenly, Tsunade was in her face again, "The only rules you need to concern yourself with are the ones I'll tell you while you work under me. So you have a lot of feelings? Yeah, that might you get killed one day, but something is going to eventually get you killed, whether it's on the field or off._

" _If your emotions can help you save someone in this job, with being a medic, then don't suppress them. You have a gift Sakura. Do not stress yourself out."_

Tsunade may have been right, but despite the fact that compassion was almost necessary to be a successful medic, it couldn't help but make her feel inadequate as a shinobi.

How contradictory, she mused. To have hands that knew the feeling of ripping as well as repairing flesh.

But she supposed that with Naruto—who only ever let his feelings make decisions for him—and his propensity towards following your heart, she could follow his lead and do what she knew was right, despite whether or not she _should_.

Anything to give her an excuse to stay and figure out what was killing these people.

She found herself thinking back to Naruto again, his bright, happy demeanor. She thought about what he was doing now that she'd left him, just like Sasuke had done. Secretly she hoped that he wouldn't resent her for what she'd done, or that he wouldn't feel betrayed by her actions, or by her choice to keep him out of this.

He wasn't meant to betray his village, that wasn't his purpose and Sakura knew that even if he knew that, he would've wanted to come with her anyways.

She just prayed he wouldn't come looking for her. He could look for Sasuke day in and day out, but she needed to be left, unfound.

The last words he spoke to her suddenly sprang to her memory.

It had been the day after Tsunade's funeral and she'd been sitting at her desk, writing angrily down on a clipboard. He'd been standing in front of her, hands shoved into his pockets, expression morose. Sakura had hoped that he wouldn't cry in front of her; she just didn't think she'd be able to stay angry with him if he started crying.

" _Sakura-chan, I… I know it's hard—trust me I know—but you've gotta… you need to breathe. Remember the good times. The things you learned. That type of stuff, y'know? I know you're upset, but trying to blame someone doesn't change the fact that she's gone."_

That had been the last time she spoke to him, and the last time she'd mentioned the fact that Tsunade had undoubtedly been _killed_ , not died from 'natural causes' like everyone thought.

He thought, like everyone else, that she was just in denial. That her refusal to simply accept Tsunade's death was due to the fact that she simply didn't _want_ it to be true.

The first time someone said to her that she was in denial—Ino, she remembers it being—she remembered snapping, and telling her that it had absolutely nothing to do with it.

" _You don't believe me,"_ she'd whispered, shaking her head as her frustration took over. " _You think I'm overreacting."_

 _"I don't think, I_ know _that you're just looking for answers. I know that this doesn't make sense to you, and I know that it's understandable."_ Ino had given her a glare. _"I didn't say anything about overreacting though. Don't put words in my mouth, Forehead."_

The day of her funeral, her best friend had come looking for her in the training fields, tears full of eyes as she tried to drag Sakura back to her apartment to prepare for the ceremony.

 _"Come on, Sakura,"_ Ino had pleaded with her, _"we have to get ready. It starts in two hours."_

Sakura hadn't even looked at her, as she continued hitting her targets with kunai and running through various training exercises. " _What's the point of being a shinobi if I can't protect the people I love."_

" _It wasn't about protecting her, Sakura. In a way, Tsunade-sama died naturally. There's nothing you could've done. You know this."_

Just replaying the words over through her head caused her to clench her fists and bite her cheek. When she tasted blood her frown deepened and—not for the first time that week—she tried hard to think about something else. Anything else.

But she couldn't stop the memories from flooding her. Naruto's face the day of the funeral. Kakashi's refusal to look her in the eye. Ino's frustrated pity. And even Shizune…

Shizune had been Sakura's only saving grace, but only for a moment.

She'd shushed her harshly the day before the funeral, standing in her office—the room which they'd had Tsunade held in after the attacks and prior to her death—trying hard not to glare at the younger woman but also trying hard to dismiss her paranoia.

 _"I know you're trying to think of an explanation for it all, but we knew that it was a possibility. We knew that Tsunade could die from her exhaustion. There's just no reversal—no magic cure we can fix up—for this type of thing._ " Her words had been quick yet soft, as if she were afraid of being overheard. Her dark eyes had shot from the door, to the window, and back to Sakura's face. _"If you were smart, you wouldn't go stomping around Konoha making these brash declarations. I've lost Tsunade-sama, and I refuse to lose you, too._ "

That had been the only acknowledgement that Shizune had ever given Sakura that she understood what had happened, and that she knew better than to speak up about it.

That was the day Sakura had called her a coward, spitting the words out as she stormed out of the room and ultimately, the hospital.

They were the last words she'd spoken to her, besides anything that wasn't about work around the hospital. She couldn't even look her in the eyes; she was too angry at the older woman.

Sakura was still angry now. But she only wished she'd said something to her; maybe not a goodbye, but at least a promise that she was going to fix things. But with a sigh, she knew it was too risky to say something like that, especially to Shizune, who she knew that, much like her, she was under near constant ANBU surveillance. Orders from Danzo.

Her refusal to refer to him as the Hokage had gotten her in trouble a few days before her departure. She'd been gathering the rest of Tsunade's personal items out of the office, alongside Shizune, when he'd walked through the door, flanked by two ANBU.

Shizune had greeted him with a proper 'Hokage-sama', and Sakura hadn't acknowledged him at all. Much to the annoyance of one of his guards.

The quick-tempered ANBU did nothing to hide his dislike for her as he _demanded_ she 'greet your Hokage properly'. Something snapped inside Sakura at that; her patience was hardly nonexistent at that point and she didn't know _how_ she kept herself from physically attacking the man, but she managed.

Dropping the books on the desk so that they'd made a loud _'thud',_ Sakura had turned toward Danzo and made eye-contact with him, glaring with him and not bothering to mask her hate.

Then, she bowed over-dramatically, glaring at the floor as she spat out a sarcastic, " _good evening, Hokage-sama_ ".

The bandaged man said nothing, only stared back at her with an unreadable expression on his scarred face.

Sakura stormed out of the office immediately, unable to be in his presence any longer.

She hated him. She truly did. She didn't think she have ever hated anyone more in her entire life. She didn't think she _could_ hate someone as much as she hated Danzo.

He was taking over her village, he was giving the citizens—civilian and shinobi alike—unrealistic curfews and outlandish expectations, he was slowly sending away more and more of the powerful jonin of the village—she hadn't seen Gai in a week in a half, she hadn't seen _Kakashi_ in almost two—and he had only been officially in office for almost three weeks now.

She was sure he would've banished Kurenai somewhere else as well if it weren't for the fact that she was heavily pregnant.

Repeating the word in her head, _banished_ , she knew deep in her heart that that was exactly what was happening.

Would she have been banished? She had to wonder, after all, she had been the apprentice to the former Hokage, one of her closest companions and confidents.

But she dismissed the thought. Shizune? Possibly. But Sakura? No, she was still nothing more than a silly girl. A chuunin with hardly any experience in her field. Sakura hadn't been viewed as a threat.

Clenching her teeth together, she knew that proving him wrong would feel so sweet when he was finally taken down.

He would regret the day he underestimated Haruno Sakura.

* * *

As the sun set behind the cliffs, Sakura kept her window wide open, letting the cool evening winds flutter through the room, cooling her skin and sending her hair flying across her face. It felt nice on her clean, freshly showered skin, and for a couple of hours she sat on the bed, cross-legged and meditating, waiting for midnight to approach in the most peaceful way she could think of.

This would most likely be the last night of peace she could spare for herself for an undetermined amount of time. She knew she was being far too careless, too laid-back, and if she wasn't careful, she'd pay for it dearly.

She'd leave that night, sometime after midnight, and head directly toward the Hidden Waterfall Village.

But only after hanging around a bit, and seeing if these widely-feared 'murderers' would show up.

Sakura knew it was unlikely. After all, when she'd arrived last week, she'd been the only person in the entire village out and about and there have been no sign of any other presence except for inside the buildings and homes. But as she thought about the boy who worked downstairs, and his younger brother's dead friend, her heart ached. She would at least _try_ to see what was going on and put a stop to it. She had no obligation to these people, but if the Hidden Stone wouldn't help these people, then _someone_ had to.

Relaxing for what could very well be the last time, Sakura kept her eyes closed and withdrew deep into her mind. She wasn't at good at sensing chakra as Ino was, and was nowhere _near_ as good at it as Naruto now was, but she could still manage fine with the limited extended sight that her chakra sensing abilities gave her.

It was almost an hour past midnight—Sakura was just about to jump off her bed, grab her bag, and leave—when she felt something.

Shooting up and out of bed she was before the window in an instant, arriving just in time to see two figures, who looked eerily similar to shadows, meander out of her sight and farther down the road. Squinting her eyes to get a better look at their retreating forms, when she saw something large thrown over one of their shoulders, something that resembled a body, her stomach sank.

It was them.

Counting to ten, she waited a few seconds before hopping out the window, putting good use to the rooftops of the small village as she ran parallel to the main road. Just when she thought she was catching up, the duo seemed to vanish in thin air.

Pausing only long enough to confirm that yes, they seemed to have made a run for it, Sakura gave chase. Jumping across rooftops she ran and ran until she reached what seemed to be the end of the line.

But unlike Konoha, when this village ended it didn't pick up with thick, dense forests. Instead, a rocky cavernous pit lay in front of her eyes.

Jumping down from the roofs, she quickly made her way down the steep incline, landing in between two sharp, severe-looking stalagmite formations, her eyes quickly scanning the immediate area. There was no sign of any other people, but she knew that there was no way they'd been _that_ much faster than she was.

It was after she took two steps when she saw it, a glimmering out of the corner of her eye. Turning and focusing intently on the rocks and boulders around her, she noticed that they were all too clean, shimmering in the moonlight. A regular shinobi wouldn't have noticed…

… but Sakura had _always_ been good at detecting genjutsu…

And when she quickly dispersed the jutsu with a quiet _kai_ , her eyes widened as she watched one of the hooded figures running toward her, sword—it had been a strange-looking _sword_ , not a body—poised to strike.

Ducking low out of the way, she tucked her head and rolled right by the figure, her actions quick, practiced, and prepared.

When she readied herself, a kunai in her left hand and chakra surging through her right, she glared into the darkness at her opponent.

A maniacal sounding laugh escaped his body; the voice was loud, but not as deep as she imagined.

"She broke out of that genjutsu in seconds. You must be getting rusty in your old age, _Itachi_."

* * *

Itachi.

Itachi.

 _Itachi_.

The name continued ringing through her head, like a shrill bell trying to warn her of what was coming.

Images of his face from their one encounter fluttered through her memory and she was powerless to stop the influx of panic that surged through her veins like ice. She tried to bite back the fear, but the fact that this time she was alone—Naruto was in the village and Kakashi was god knows where and Chiyo-sama was dead—made his presence feel entirely suffocating.

Turning to her left slightly, she could hardly make out his silhouette in the dark as he approached slowly, his steps soft and calculated. It was then when she noticed the blood red clouds decorating their cloaks.

 _Akatsuki._

That's who'd been terrifying and killing these people.

Her anger began to rise.

"I suppose you're right," he agreed, sounding bored. "I do remember her being resistant at our last encounter as well. The blonde jinchuuriki however, not so much."

Completely ignoring the fact that she'd somehow made an impression on the infamous Uchiha Itachi, Sakura bit her tongue and struggled to refrain from snapping at him. She hated this man more than anything. Perhaps more than she hated Danzo, but that was a fairly even race at this point.

"Ah, so she was on the jinchuuriki's team. Meaning she's an old friend of your brother's then, huh?" With less concealed and clumsier movements, the larger of the two approached as well, hoisting his large sword up and over his shoulder. Sakura could've sworn she saw the thing _shiver_ as he patted it on the side, like someone would praise a pet.

His skin was a light blue and his eyes looked almost inhuman. In comparison, he made Itachi look downright _normal_.

"Yes, it seems so."

Suddenly, her frustration with the situation was too much for her to handle. "I guess if you're here then Sasuke hasn't killed you yet," she spat with as much malice as she could.

"No, not yet," he said, almost as if he were distracted by something. As he grew closer to her, Sakura began to move her feet backwards, keeping herself aware of her surroundings so she wouldn't be backed into a corner. It was hard to avoid his eyes—after all, it was something that all people did upon encountering others—but she managed to keep her sights on him from the neck down. "But," he began, "how do you know that I haven't killed _him_ yet?"

Sakura tried hard to mask her shock at his counter-question. "There's—no. You didn't. I know it."

"And how do you know? I'm sure you don't even know where he is. Let alone whether he's alright or not. I could be coming back from killing him right now. And you don't know it."

He was trying to push her buttons, she knew it. But for some reason she couldn't resist the bait. "That's not true! He's alive, and he's not going anywhere until you're long dead."

"You don't know that—"

"Yes I _do_!" She yelled.

"How?"

"Because I know Sasuke-kun!" Her back hit something solid and she began to panic. She was suddenly more furious at _herself_ than him for allowing herself to be distracted long enough to be cornered. Looking around quickly and finding nothing but the side of a cliff and a large boulder, she swore under her breath before turning her attention back toward Itachi.

That was when she made the mistake of looking him in the eye.

Immediately aware of her slip-up, his expression turned from bored into pleased in a split-second. An odd little side-smirk graced his lips, giving Sakura a strange feeling.

It was when she realized that he had the same smile as Sasuke when she found herself gasping. It was hard to remember they were brothers and that they shared the same blood, especially after everything.

"I'll make this quick, since you'll most likely break out of this in a minute or so."

Her eyes widened, "A genjutsu—"

"You don't know my brother as well as you think you do."

Sakura's jaw dropped. His statement sent her _reeling_ and she tightened her fists at her side. "Excuse me?"

"You don't," he repeated simply. "No matter how well you think you know him, you don't know him well enough."

"You have no right to say something like that to me! And what? You think you know him? Just because you were born brothers? You're _nothing_ to Sasuke anymore, you hear me?" She was screaming and she could feel tears beginning to gather in the corners of her eyes but she couldn't bring herself to care. If he was going to kill her than she was going to let him know exactly what she wanted him to know. "All you are to him is a goal to achieve. He's going to kill you. And after that…"

"After that, what? He'll come home to you?"

That statement caught her off guard, and she found herself stumbling over her words. "I'm not—of course he'd—what else would he do?"

It was a rhetorical question, but the moment the words escaped her lips she knew that Itachi had an answer for her; an answer that had been the center of much of her anxiety and nightmares that she'd had over the past few years.

The fact that Sasuke might kill Itachi and still not return.

"You know as well as I do that Sasuke is an emotional person. Not unpredictable," he clarified, as if it were an important thing to distinguish, "just prone to impulse." He stepped closer to her, as if to get a better look at her. He was within arm's reach when he finally stopped again. "What will you do if he doesn't return? If he _does_ manage to kill me but doesn't come back to your precious village?"

"There's no use returning now anyways," she spat, hopelessness creeping up on her like a snake slithering up her body, ready to squeeze the life out of her. "Konoha will be run into the ground at the rate things are going." She snapped. "You may even be alive to see it."

Her words seemed to surprise him, as if the answer she gave him was not what he was looking for.

"Why? Because your village is in ruins because of the Akatsuki?"

"No," she croaked, her legs feeling weak as tears began to fall down her cheeks, "because Danzo is going to kill everyone I love."

There was a pause after that. Sakura was struggling to hold her composure as more tears slipped down her cheeks. Itachi simply stood, staring at her with a peculiar expression on his face, as if he were trying to figure something out.

"Your Hokage died in the attack."

"That's what everyone thinks," she spat out cynically. "He murdered her. I know it. I know that he's the one that killed her, and—and _no one believes me_."

Sobs took over her, wracking her body and causing her legs to buckle underneath her weight. The truth of her own words spilling over her like a tidal wave.

No one believed her.

Danzo was a filthy murderer, had taken over her beloved village, and was causing people to disappear one by one.

And all that poor, little Haruno Sakura could do was cry into the dirt, head bowed before one of the most infamous Akatsuki members of all time, like a lamb at the slaughter, resigned to her fate.

"Get up," his words rang through her sharply as he commanded her. "Stand up, now."

"Aren't you just going to kill me?" She sniffled, too ashamed of herself to even lift her head to look at him. Her question was truly genuine though. Here he had her, trapped in a genjutsu—that she hadn't even made an _effort_ of escaping from—and on the ground before him, not even attempting to put up a fight.

Easy pickings, if she ever saw any.

"No Konoha shinobi that I know would ever give up this miserably. Stand _up_ ," he repeated, pushing against her knee with his sandal, prodding her like stubborn cattle.

" _I hate you_!" She screeched suddenly, throwing her head up, pink hair flying back behind her, as she shot a deadly glare at him. Meeting his bright red eyes she was shocked when she saw a flash of emotion flicker through them.

It was the first and only time she would ever see any semblance of emotion from the stone-cold murderer. And little did she know it would be the last she'd ever see out of him.

But Sakura had seen enough of that look during the last few weeks; pity was an easy enough emotion to recognize anyway.

"Hate me all you want," he said, unaffected by her outburst, "but that won't save your village."

"It's not like I can do anything anyways," she snapped, her energy quickly evaporating, her fiery rage being replaced with a gentle ache in her chest. "I can't do a damn thing."

"So you're fleeing as a refugee then? Running away from your village and its problems?" He mused. "Sounds like something a coward would do."

The word _coward_ seemed to ignite something inside of her. Suddenly a memory of her spitting the same words at Shizune weeks ago flashed before her, and her anger picked back up.

She lunged at him, angrily, eyes blind with leftover tears. And when her hands grasped fabric she pushed chakra into her arms and legs and turned her body sharply, swapping their positions so that _he_ was up against the stone and _she_ was the one keeping him there.

"Shut _up_!" She screeched, her mind still reeling over the fact that he'd allowed her to grab him like that. "Just shut up!"

 _It's his genjutsu,_ she reminded herself quickly, her fingers digging into the black and red cloak, _you can't do anything here anyways_.

He was more than an entire head taller than her, and even though she had him pressed against the wall, hands dangerously close to gripping him by the throat, he stared back at her calmly, as if entirely unthreatened by her actions.

"I wonder what you're planning on doing next…" he spoke as if she wasn't standing directly before him, her face close to his own. "Where are you planning on going…?"

Glaring deeply, she opened her mouth to tell him off, but when she began answering his question, she froze.

"To the Hidden Waterfall. Where one of Tsunade-sama's old colleagues lives."

"Why?" He commanded in a deep voice. She couldn't focus on the fact that she was saying things she shouldn't have been telling him, or that she couldn't keep the words from spilling forth. All Sakura could focus on was the black tomoes in his scarlet eyes, spinning, swirling, morphing into different shapes and then returning once more. It was hypnotizing.

"She'll know more about Danzo. More information that might help." Her words were robotic, coming out automatically, despite her attempts to hold them back.

"No she won't," Itachi muttered quietly, still holding eye contact with her. "Then what?"

"Kabuto," she replied, as if in a trance. "He knows things that Orochimaru knew. Orochimaru knew Danzo. The information can help."

"It can," Itachi agreed, as if thinking allowed, "but Kabuto is too unstable to bargain with. He'll kill you or capture you before you can leave with any valuable information. Bad idea. Who else?"

"That's it. No more." And then suddenly, her eyes widened and she looked away. Releasing her hold on him, she gripped her own throat, slapping one hand tightly over her mouth as she stumbled backward. "Wh—what did you _do_ to me?" She screeched, the tears that had begun to dry beginning to gather once more in her eyes.

"Your plan is rudimentary and has flaws. It will never work."

A fear that she hadn't felt before suddenly overcame her. Itachi knowing her plans meant that the _Akatsuki_ knew her plans. And if they knew her plans then it was game over for her; there was no way they'd let her fix the situation that Konoha was undergoing. If anything, they'd use it to their advantage. After all, the village was still weak from the last attack, and with Danzo sending away more and more special jonin, he was doing so much more harm than good.

Somehow, when figuring out her plan, she'd never taken interference from the Akatsuki into consideration.

What a fool she was.

"You… you better leave the village alone! This is—it's none of your business what's going on over there! I can handle it! Leave the village alone or else I'll—"

"You're not going to the Hidden Waterfall, or the Sound Village." His voice was loud and piercing—for some reason Sakura felt the need to slap her hands over her ears but she resisted the urge and instead turned to look at him once more.

Another mistake.

She found herself once more captured by the swirling red and black of his eyes, and some part of her subconscious screamed at her as if in an attempt to warn her of things to come.

"You aren't going to either of those places. They're dead ends. Pointless. A waste of time. Instead, you're going to go somewhere else." Suddenly, she wasn't standing any longer, nor was she lying down. She couldn't feel anything. All she could hear was his voice, commanding her sternly. All she could see was the red and black spinning and spinning and spinning…

The last thing she remembered before the darkness took her was the sharingan, setting her into a dark, cold, trance-like state…

* * *

 **A/N** : Just to clarify some things about the timeline, since I have altered some details and taken artistic liberty with some facts: Sasuke didn't kill Itachi until after Pein's attack as opposed to before it. That's really the main alteration I've made. And of course everything diverges from the main plot from there.

This story will typically have updates every two weeks although depending on what type of feedback I receive and on how much writing I get done I will post more frequently. (This chapter is only a day early, but future chapters may be even earlier.)

Please review and let me know what you think. Predictions are always my favorite. Hope you enjoyed it.


	3. Chapter 3

Eyes flying open, Sakura found herself gasping for air.

Leaning forward onto her hands, she immediately found herself violently retching, her stomach regurgitating its contents onto the ground beneath her.

When the vomiting stopped, she gasped again, desperately trying to fill her aching lungs with as much oxygen as she could inhale. When the nausea subsided, she spat a few times, trying to rid her mouth of the horrid taste.

She was shaking, but she didn't know why. She wasn't cold, but the way she was shivering was as if she'd been sitting in the snow instead of the mud.

Mud.

Lifting her arms up and sitting herself backward, she rested her head against the stone behind her and looked around. She didn't remember it raining, she just remembered—

And that's when it all came back to her.

Itachi, his blue companion, the genjutsu, his sharingan…

Before she could anticipate it, she was back on her hands and knees, vomiting once more.

It took her a few minutes to completely empty her stomach and sit back again, almost completely drained of energy; her dry-heaves were almost more exhausting than the actual vomiting had been. Lifting a shaking arm, she wiped away excess spit and puke, before weakly letting her head loll to the side.

She didn't realize she was crying until she saw the tears dripping off her face and landing in the mud beneath her. And when she lifted her arm back up to wipe those away instead, the tears turned to full-blown sobs.

Lifting her legs and pulling her knees to her chest, she closed her eyes and rested her head against them, allowing herself to let it out.

Never before had she ever been so scared—so utterly petrified—in her entire sixteen years of life than she had with Itachi only inches from herself. If she thought seeing her entire village destroyed before her very eyes had been terrifying, then she clearly knew nothing of the absolute sense of _dread_ you could experience while at the hands of Uchiha Itachi.

Another wave of nausea flooded her senses and she found herself biting her knuckles, eyes clenched tightly shut, waiting for it to pass. It took several minutes for it to leave and when it finally did, Sakura had gathered enough strength to lift her head back up and finally take in her surroundings.

Looking up and slightly behind her, she saw the cliff high above her—the village was no doubt up there and clearly out of her sight. When she realized she knew exactly where she was, it caused some of her fear and anxiety to subside. If she closed her eyes and listened closely enough, she could just barely hear the soft, faraway sound of voices carrying through the air to her. More proof that the village she'd spent a full week in was just up and out of her reach.

The sky was cloudy and overcast, a dense fog covering much of the spikes and rock formations that Sakura could see in the distance. At the sight of the dangerous valley in front of her, Sakura was relieved when she remembered that she'd be travelling in the opposite distance, back toward the village and then past it further.

Standing up on shaky legs, she stretched and cracked her joints; idly she wondered how long she'd been unconscious. At least through the night, was the conclusion she came to. Somehow she must've slept through a rainstorm, she figured as she attempted to smooth out her still-damp, and now, somewhat muddy clothes.

Giving herself a few long minutes to gather her bearings, she double checked her weapons and supplies and was genuinely surprised to find that she still had everything she'd left the village with still in her possession.

Itachi hadn't taken anything.

Not that he would need anything she had, she figured. But she would've guessed that he would at least have taken her weapons; to disarm her like any good shinobi would do when facing an enemy.

It was still difficult for her to think about the fact that he could have very well killed her, instead of placing a genjutsu on her and leaving her alone; entirely _unharmed_ nonetheless. She still couldn't make any sense of it, and the more she thought about it, the more her head throbbed.

After she decided on her next course of action—to simply start where she left off before she'd decided to attempt to hunt down Itachi and his Akatsuki teammate—she found herself easily scaling the cliff behind her, making her way up and over the edge, the small village right before her.

As she reentered the village, she walked along the edge of the roads, trying not to divert anyone's attention toward her, but figuring that it would be easiest to get through the village this way anyways. When she started seeing villagers and civilians, it eased some of her worry—just their faces, although unfamiliar to her, were enough to further ease the potent fear that was still flowing deeply through her veins.

But when a couple of the villagers glanced at her and quickly rushed away, she faltered in her step. A couple minutes later an elderly woman got a good look at her and then, with wide eyes, hastily ushered the two children she was walking with into an alleyway.

Pulling the hood up and over her head, Sakura's paranoia started to act up once more.

Quickly, she made a beeline directly for the inn near the entrance of the town; the very one she'd stayed at for a week. Slipping through the door, she waltzed right up to the desk. And the boy that she was expecting to see was sitting right there where he always was.

But when he looked up, and when Sakura opened her mouth to speak, she was cut off abruptly by a deep timbre.

"What do you think you're doing back here?"

Head jerking to look behind her, she watched as the unnaturally tall, elderly gentleman from her first night stormed into the room with more grace than she expected from someone his age.

"What—"

"Don't you ' _what'_ me," he cut her off sternly, stopping only feet from her and looking her up and down with his dark, hollow eyes. "I see you're not dead. I figured you would've gotten yourself killed after chasing after those thugs the other night. Stupid girl," he admonished.

"Wait, wait. What do you mean 'other night'? What's today?" The fact that he knew how she'd chased down the pair—which had ended up being damn Akatsuki members no less—was somehow unimportant in comparison to the timeline he was giving her.

His glare lessened and he looked at her strangely. "It's Thursday, girl."

That revelation shocked her. She hadn't just been unconscious for a night. She'd been out cold—courtesy of Itachi's genjutsu—for _four days_.

It was a miracle no one had spotted her. ANBU especially.

"You better get out of here," he told her, walking around her until he was seated in the corner behind the desk. "Before they come back looking for you."

Sakura paled. "What do you mean?"

"I may be old but I'm not stupid. I know a ninja when I see one. And we had some passersby in here just two days ago. Looking for you." He eyed her again, as if judging her appearance. "Pink hair," he scoffed. "What kind of ninja has pink hair…" Shaking his head he grabbed a newspaper from under the chair and opened it noisily. "If I were you I'd do a better job at trying to go unfound. You rogue ninja are bad for business."

Ignoring the fact that he called her a rogue ninja, she approached him. "I'll get out of your hair, I swear. And you'll never see me again. But first, can you tell me who was looking for me? Or at least, what they looked like?"

He laughed humorlessly, the sound coming out more like a bark than anything. "There was a whole gang of them. Young punks claiming that they're ninja," he shook his head. "Back in my day, ninja weren't as obnoxious. They were hardworking, _respectable_ people. I didn't talk to any of them, of course. A couple of them came storming in here, with a big dog, sniffing around for you. I'm surprised to see you here without them. Guess they aren't as good at tracking as they think."

Kiba and Akamaru, definitely. But the fact that they'd been _here_ , in this very village, and hadn't found her just down the cliff at the edge of town, made her feel strange. Something was definitely off.

"And some annoying blonde boy. Marks on his face made him look like he had whiskers."

"Naruto," she breathed the word softly. Just the sound of him made her chest ache with conflicting emotions. She missed him terribly, but she couldn't let him find her. She had to do this.

"There was a whole group of 'em," he waved a wrinkled hand dismissively. "That's all I know. So you better get going. I don't want a messy confrontation between ninjas to take place in my lobby. Or even in this damn village. Now go on, _shoo_."

She didn't let him tell her any further and soon enough she was out of the inn and even out of the village. Running east, she attempted to organize her thoughts as she pushed her body to its limits.

It wasn't Monday morning. It was Thursday morning. The genjutsu that Itachi had put her in took four days to wear off, not one single night.

ANBU wasn't on her trail. Naruto was. And so were Kiba and Akamaru and potentially many more of her friends. That meant that they knew she'd left, but she wondered if they knew why she'd left, or what she was planning.

She wondered if Danzo had ordered them to. She couldn't fathom how Danzo would even _allow_ for them to leave the village as a group in search of her. What had he told them? There had to be a reason he'd allow it. Some ulterior motive.

But even though Naruto was searching for her, she'd been right _there_ —right on the edge of the town—and they'd passed right over her. How? Had Itachi placed a genjutsu on the area? But even so, if Hinata or Neji was with them, wouldn't they have been able to detect it? Or see her through it?

Now that they were off her trail though, it would be much easier to travel to—

Sakura stopped abruptly, skidding to a halt as she thought to herself.

Where was she going again?

Shaking her head, she cracked her neck and her shoulders. She was stressed. So much had happened within the past couple weeks that she was bound to be forgetful. Rubbing her temples she thought harder. Travel to this tiny town over the border of Earth Country, lay low for several days, and take off east towards…

And then the pain hit.

It was excruciating. As if someone had hit her skull with an axe and was struggling to pull the two sides open, cracking it like an egg.

She couldn't help when she fell to the ground, hands clutching her head tightly, fingers digging into her scalp. A piercing, almost inhuman screech ripped itself from her throat, the breath immediately leaving her lungs as she began to gasp haggardly.

For what seemed like an eternity, she was completely immobile on the ground, hands gripping her head tightly, knees pulled up to her chest, involuntarily shaking as the pain pulsed through her, almost to the timing of her own heartbeat.

When the steady throbbing began to die down, all she could focus on was the way the damp ground felt soothing against her body, cooling her head as well as her body as she worked to regulate her breathing.

Despite the fact that the aftermath still left her head feeling heavy and sore, she released her grip on her head and forced herself onto her feet. Breathing felt good, relieving the pain in a strange way, so she focused on that. Inhale deeply, exhale slowly. Again. Inhale, exhale. Her mind was still racing, trying to make sense of what happened. More pain erupted behind her eyes and she winced.

Forcing the thoughts from her head she focused on her breathing.

Inhale deeply.

Exhale slowly.

Closing her eyes, she had to resist the urge to cry out when the only thought that came to mind was not a thought but an image. The sight of Itachi's blood red sharingan, spinning, bleeding, _staring_ at her, caused her to bite her lip, muffling a desperate whimper.

 _What did he do to me?_

Despite a slight change in plans, she continued East for the rest of the day, only stopping once night fell and she was once more buried within the safe cover of thick, dark woods. She didn't travel fast, only keeping her pace at a slow run—more similar to a jog, really—and keeping her eyes and ears open for potential company—ANBU, Naruto, her friends, more Akatsuki—as she travelled through Earth Country.

She'd decided, after hours of her head pounding unforgivingly, that she'd give up on attempting to remember whatever plan she'd come up with before leaving the village. Itachi had undoubtedly done something to her, to her memory, and he'd left her with a blank slate and horrifying pain to accompany it.

Although she desperately wished she remembered, it was of no use to even try. The Akatsuki most likely had her plans—swiped right out of her very own mind—and because of her foolish carelessness, the village was in more danger than it had been in before; and Danzo had already ensured enough suffering for a lifetime simply by assuming the position as Hokage.

It should've been Kakashi, she mused with frustration for what could have very well been the hundredth time since Danzo's appointment. That was who they had all assumed would be taking over. Even Kakashi himself was reluctantly worried about it.

There hadn't even been an announcement made—not even a ceremony, like there _always_ was—when Danzo took hold of Konoha. ANBU simply began to appear more openly throughout the village, and ever-so-quietly, more special Jonin began to disappear.

Settling herself high up in the trees long after the sun had fell below the horizon, Sakura drifted off to sleep, kunai in hand and head still pulsing softly with dull pain.

.

.

By the time the first rays of sun began to shine through the leaves of the trees, Sakura was up and wide awake, a new plan in her mind and her confidence almost fully restored.

She would search for Kakashi.

Even though she was only running on about four hours of sleep, she felt energized. Ready to run across entire countries if it meant she'd find out where Danzo had sent her sensei.

Of what she knew of Danzo—besides the fact that he was a heartless murderer—she was well aware of the fact that he wasn't stupid. As she attempted to put herself in his shoes for a moment, she realized that he had to act in a way that wouldn't be suspicious to the Jonin that were higher up in the village; like Kakashi-sensei was.

Missions. That's where they'd been sent. Sakura knew that since it's what they'd all been told. And she did believe it… to an extent. What she had to figure out was what type of missions could they have possibly been sent on that would keep them away from the village for weeks and potentially, _months_?

That's when she started piecing more things together.

Special Jonin were only utilized for A-ranked or even S-classed missions. So immediately her mind started running through a mental list of the places that were currently the most dangerous to be right now. Places that were a threat—on any level—to Konoha or to Danzo's rule.

The Hidden Rain and the Hidden Sound were the two that she thought of first. Ame was where the Akatsuki had been lurking behind the scenes in the shadows; it was where Jiraiya-sama had met his end. Although Pein—Nagato, she found herself correcting, the _true_ leader of all of Pein's forms—was dead and so were the terrifying powers of the rinnegan, so Sakura couldn't see the threat that the poor village posed to Konoha.

The Sound was where Orochimaru, and many of his hideouts, had been centralized. There was a very good chance that Kakashi could have been sent there. But Orochimaru was also dead, and the last she heard of him, Sasuke hadn't stuck around to take control—Sakura hadn't been surprised when she heard this; political power had never been what Sasuke wanted. Only revenge.

Of course, Kabuto was still alive, but she wasn't entirely sure what he was doing now. Following in Orochimaru's footsteps, potentially.

It wasn't a certain thing, but the chance of Kabuto picking up where Orochimaru left off was enough for her to make her next choice. If Kabuto was still a threat to Konoha, Danzo could have sent _someone_ to go investigate.

To Otogakure she'd go.

For two days she traveled. Keeping close to the northern border of Fire Country but never once crossing over into their territory. She didn't need to risk running into ANBU or any Konoha shinobi for that matter. Where she was travelling, normal Leaf shinobi didn't have jurisdiction.

On the dawn of her third day—she'd slept that previous night for a few hours, and it had been the only rest she'd gotten since she'd begun her trek to Oto—she was several hours West of Otogakure, when she abruptly stopped.

Bracing herself on a tree branch, she immediately silenced her heavy breathing and listened.

She'd _sworn_ she'd heard someone yelling her name.

As she stood there, waiting for any further sign that it _had_ been her name shouted at her, and not the wind that was slowly picking up the closer she got to Oto, she began to grow nervous. Even if it _had_ been her name, she shouldn't have been stopping to check. She had a village to travel to, a person to find, and a madman to expose. She didn't have time to let her delusions get the best of her.

But when she began running again, a bit faster as her nerves began to sink back into her, she was absolutely _certain_ she'd heard her name. And there was only one person who could yell that loudly and have their voice travel literal _miles_.

 _Naruto._

For a couple of seconds, Sakura was at war with herself. She wanted to see him so terribly that she hesitated with her movements. It would be selfish to let them catch up to her. All that would happen is that they'd try to get her to come home, she'd say no, and then she'd have to escape. There was the chance that they'd try to use force, but Sakura already had some gadgets waiting for them in her weapons pouch that she would use to get away.

So she ran, ignoring the ache in her chest that erupted as she thought of her friends, of Naruto. None of which who knew the true reason that she left.

For all they knew, she could be running off to join up with Sasuke. It was a ridiculous thought and hardly a possibility, but she'd left them with nothing to go off of. Who knew the lies that Danzo had told them about her?

After several minutes, the shouting began to grow louder, carrying stronger through the air as the calls fell on her ears. He was definitely gaining ground, and if she didn't pick up the pace, or at the very least shake him off her trail, he was going to catch up with her soon.

And Sakura couldn't have that happen.

With a chakra-laced punch, she dove into the ground, breaking the Earth upon contact and causing the ground to splinter under her touch. Afterward, she pumped chakra into her feet and stormed across the ground, causing the ground to crack and rumble beneath her feet, creating a literal path of destruction.

Knowing Naruto, he'd follow it.

Quickly abandoning the path she had just barely begun to create, she veered right sharply and began to head South. After a few miles, she'd double back, and with a wide arch she'd travel back North-East toward Oto.

For several minutes, as she travelled in the opposite direction, and as Naruto's calls grew softer and farther apart, Sakura knew she'd finally shaken him off her trail. With relief and anguish battling for control, she pushed the emotions aside and began thinking of Kakashi. Just the thought of possibly seeing him again made the soreness in her legs and the ache in her chest lessen dramatically.

"Stop moving or I'll have no choice but to strike you."

The shock of the words—so, so close to her—caused Sakura to gasp, jumping backwards with so much force that the tree she backed up into violently splintered.

Pushing the pain back, Sakura grabbed her kunai and turned to face Neji, who stood several meters in front of her, palms up and byakugan activated.

"Sakura!" Hinata jumped out of the woods to land directly at Neji's side, her byakugan also activated, a worried, almost shocked expression on her face. "Sakura, please stop. We just want to help you."

Hand hovering over her pouch, she knew that she couldn't act now, she had to wait for the rest of them to arrive. She needed to draw them in closer and then pretend she was giving up. That was the only way she'd be able to set the gas off and incapacitate them.

" _Sakura!_ " And with a final shout, Naruto busted through the woods, being closely followed by both Kiba and Akamaru, Ino and TenTen trailing after.

And within seconds, everyone was there.

Neji and Hinata stood, palms facing her and byakugan activated, to her right. To her left, Naruto and the others who had followed him. In front of her, Shikamaru and Chouji slowly strode out of the woods, stopping several meters away from the others. And as she turned to look over her shoulder, she found Shino and Rock Lee, poised behind her, fully and effectively surrounding her from all sides.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto's voice was pained; full of sadness and confusion as he called her name out, "what are you doing? Why did you leave the leaf village?"

"And what the _fuck_ are you doing _here_?!" Ino asked angrily, and rightfully so. "The hidden sound is right there. Don't tell me you're going to look for Sasuke-kun…"

As she let her eyes drift to meet all the eyes of her friends, she found that she couldn't look at Naruto or Ino for too long; she could feel tears beginning to gather behind her eyes. She missed them so much, and to see the betrayed looks on their faces just about broke her heart.

"You guys need to let me go."

"No," it was Shino who spoke, and the sound of his deep voice scared her, "You need to come back now. There isn't anything to negotiate."

"Come on, Sakura-chan. Just come back, forget about Sasuke. Just come back. Please." Naruto pleaded, and the sound of his voice made her chest ache. She was hurting him. This was her fault. First he'd had to deal with Sasuke defecting, and now she was doing the same thing.

In that moment, Sakura _wanted_ to come back. She wanted to hug Naruto and apologize to Ino and go back home and sleep in her bed and forget that anything was wrong—

But she couldn't.

"I can't," she said, her voice tired, strained. "Please. Listen to me, I can't go back."

"Sasuke might not even be—"

"I'm not looking for Sasuke, Naruto!" She yelled, her patience already running out. "I can't _tell_ you what I'm doing! Please! You need to trust me on this."

"We were told to retrieve you by any means necessary," Neji spoke, stepping forward, glaring at her with his white, frustrated eyes. "And we aren't intending on letting you go."

"Sakura-chan, _please_ ," Naruto's voice cracked and Sakura couldn't even bring herself to look at him. She couldn't watch his eyes—eyes that were always so full of emotion, eyes that couldn't hide a thing—as he begged her to stop. "Please just come on. Whatever is wrong, I'm sure we can figure it out. This isn't the way to work. We need to go back before they declare you a missing-nin. Seriously now. Come on. I swear, I'll fix what's wrong. I will."

Another promise from Naruto that Sakura knew he would do anything to keep. His genuine words always got to her, striking a chord and reminding her that even despite everything that's happened, Naruto was still naïve.

"Listen," she whispered loudly, forcing her voice to be steady, "I can't tell you now. But I'll tell you one day, okay? You need to—"

"No, _you_ need to listen," Ino chimed in, and Sakura could _feel_ her fury, her unbridled frustration, in the air. She didn't blame her. "I don't care what Sasuke-kun said to you. You can't go. Now turn your ass around, and come home with us."

That caused Sakura to stop. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Danzo told us all about you meeting up with Sasuke earlier this month," TenTen added, finally speaking. "And we're here to tell you that you're being stupid, and that you need to come back, now."

"Wait, I don't know what you guys are talking about." She turned back to Naruto, "I haven't seen Sasuke since we found him all those months ago. Back when Orochimaru was still alive."

Naruto looked conflicted in that moment, and Sakura was _sure_ he had to believe her.

"The last I saw of Sasuke he was with Orochimaru and Kabuto. It was with _you_ , Naruto. You have to believe me."

"I want to but, Sakura-chan…" he seemed at war with himself. "If that's not what you're doing, then what _are_ you doing?"

"I'm helping you guys. I'm helping the village. I need to do this and you have to let me."

"Do what?" He finally yelled, steadily approaching her.

"I can't tell you. Just know that it's not safe in Konoha."

Ino groaned, "Sakura, if this is about Tsunade then stop it."

"You don't understand—"

"She's dead, Sakura. And she's not coming back—"

" _And he killed her!_ " She shouted, her emotions getting the best of her and her tears beginning to pool in her eyes, clouding her vision. "Danzo killed her and _none_ of you believe me! I thought we were friends!" She glared at them, although with tears streaming down her cheeks she was sure she looked quite pitiful. "Aren't you supposed to stand by your friends? Aren't you supposed to believe in them?" She clenched her hands into fists, cocked one of her arms, and hit the tree that was directly behind her, chunks of bark and wood flying through the air.

"Sakura-chan—" Naruto reached out toward her, his own tears beginning to overflow.

"No! Don't touch me! You don't believe me and you're just letting that murderer run free, with full control over Konoha! And now all of our sensei's are disappearing and soon enough we'll never see them again." She was sobbing at this point, Naruto standing a few feet from her, an arm half-stretched out toward her as he watched her display with a pained look on his face. "And—and now Itachi is going to do something to the village and—"

"Itachi? What are you talking about?" At this, Naruto closed the gap between him, grabbing her upper arms and forcing her to look directly at him. Sakura flinched at the contact but quickly gave in, refusing to fight him off when all she wanted all along was to hug him.

"I—I found him and he put me under a genjutsu and—and… he _did_ something to me! And I can't remember my plan and I just—" As if to emphasize her words, the pulsing started back up, causing her to grip her head, bending over as she fought through the pain.

"Sakura-chan," Naruto shook her slightly by her shoulders. "Itachi is dead."

She blinked up at him, hardly able to see through her tears. "What? But—how long?"

"Thursday," Shikamaru finally spoke up, approaching with his arms crossed over his chest. "Sasuke killed him and we heard news from the leaf village that afternoon."

Thursday.

That had been when Sakura had woken up out of her genjutsu that he'd casted on her several nights before.

"What did he do to you?" Naruto shook her shoulders again. Sakura knew he was panicked, and angry as hell. "What happened?"

"I don't know, I was in a genjutsu and then I woke up a few days later and—and my head won't stop hurting." She clenched her eyes shut and grabbed at her hair, pulling on it, wishing that it would lessen the pain _inside_ her head.

"Stop that," Ino admonished gently, pushing Naruto aside as she removed Sakura's hands out of her hair, placing a hand on her forehead. "Let me take a look."

With her hands free, she reached out and grabbed a hold of the two of them, one hand holding Naruto's, the other gripping Ino's white cloak tightly. In that moment she felt like a child, scared, alone and afraid of things that no one could save her from. She wanted to indulge. To allow Naruto to hold her and Ino to brush her hair back and whisper reassuring words. She wanted the comfort, the familiarity, the feeling of _safety_ that she knew only her two best friends could provide her with.

But when she felt Ino's cloak slip out of her grip, Sakura's eyes flew open in time to watch her collapse to the ground.

There was a flurry of movement.

Shikamaru and Chouji rushed to her side, with Hinata following directly after.

"What the fuck?" Kiba was pacing.

"What happened? Is she alright?" Chouji's worried eyes kept travelling between Ino and Sakura.

"She's breathing, but she must've seen something," Hinata spoke softly, pressing a hand to her forehead and taking her pulse.

"What did she see?"

"Is that Itachi's doing?"

"So what? Did he turn Sakura into some sort of weapon?"

"We _have_ to go back now. No choice."

"Is she okay? What's wrong with her?"

"Give her some space."

"Sakura-chan, what was that?"

She blinked a few times before looking up at Naruto, who was now bending over her, leaning down close with a hand pressed to her back. She hadn't even realized she'd fallen to her knees until that moment there. The pain in her head must've been dulling her other senses in addition to causing her nausea.

Without replying, she looked around at her friends. They were all gathered closely, either hovering over Ino, looking at her from a slight distance, or talking amongst themselves.

It was now or never.

With a shaky hand, she reached into her pack and grabbed what she'd been saving for this very circumstance.

But before she could throw the smoke bombs to the ground, she looked up and met Hinata's eyes; the girl had seen what she was doing.

"Sakura-san, wait—"

The sound of the bombs exploding against the ground beside them is what cut Hinata off. Suddenly, there was smoke everywhere, burning her eyes, her nose, her throat, and further clouding up her senses.

But she held her breath and began to run, sprinting through the woods and away from her friends at top speed. Even though her face burned, she continued running, refusing to look back or even pause. She had a pretty high tolerance of the concoction—one of many that she'd developed under Tsunade's tutelage—but she'd used a high concentration of it to ensure that her friends wouldn't get away, and that she wouldn't be followed.

It took her a couple of minutes to blink away the irritating powdery substance that had completely dusted over her face, but when she did and when she was finally able to breathe properly again, she slowed down enough to grab a drink of water from her canteen. Just when she was sure she wasn't being followed—that her poison had done the trick and completely immobilized her friends—she heard her name.

"Sa… Sakura-chan!"

Turning around with a gasp, she was amazed to see Naruto in the far distance, giving chase. His movements were slow and almost jerky, but he was still moving. Sakura was so shocked that she couldn't even continue, she just stood there on a tree branch, entirely frozen and so genuinely surprised that she didn't know how he could've _possibly_ been able to still track her down.

It wasn't until he got closer and saw Hinata in his arms, eyes closed but byakugan still activated—Sakura didn't even know it was possible to work the byakugan with closed eyes, but as she thought about it more, it made sense—that she understood how he was able to locate her.

"Sakura-chan," he called again as he approached. He sounded just as angry as he looked—his eyes bloodshot, his breath coming in gasps, his teeth clenched and bared for her to see. "What did you _do_ to us?!"

"They'll wake up in a few hours," Sakura forced the words out through her sore throat, "they'll be fine."

"You—you can't _do this_ , y'know! We're your friends! Let us help!" He shouted as he approached. "Let _me_ help!"

"The more you fight the toxin, the longer it puts off the reaction," Sakura informed the pair as they stopped just below her, staring down on them from where she stood high in the trees. "That's just the way it is. I'm sorry, but you know I have to do this."

As she spoke, Hinata fell into a coughing fit, her arms falling limply at her sides as the paralysis began to kick in.

"What about you?" He growled angrily, struggling to keep his burning eyes open as he glared up at her.

"I have a resistance to it since I created. You don't. Again, I'm really sorry, Naruto, I wish I could come home but I have to do this for the village. For you guys."

"Sakura-chan, please stop. Please!"

She shook her head, "I'm sorry Naruto. Please lay down somewhere safe and let the toxin run it's course, I promise it'll be over soon and—"

"Naruto-kun, we have to go back." Hinata's voice was so loud that it shocked Sakura; she'd _never_ heard the girl speak up like that before.

Naruto glanced down at her, struggling to keep his eyes open. "What? Why?"

"There's a group of ninja heading directly for everyone. We have to go back. Sakura," she forced her eyes open and Sakura almost gasped upon seeing the usually white, wide eyes, bright red and inflamed—it almost gave the heiress a scary, demonic-like look to her. "You need to give us the antidote. They're high-level ninjas. We _have_ to go back now."

Sakura's stomach jumped up into her throat. In that moment, she felt like an idiot. Of course she hadn't taken into account the fact that they weren't in Fire Country anymore, and that the lands around the Hidden Sound weren't as guarded and protected as they were back home.

Her friends were in danger and it was all her fault.

"They've reached them," Hinata spoke, her voice starting to shake, "Sakura-san, _please_ —"

"I don't have an antidote," Sakura choked out, leaning against the side of the tree, shoulder pressing into the bark as she struggled to stay upright. "Oh god," she gasped, the dread overcoming her, "I don't have an antidote with me. I didn't think to bring one. Oh god, oh god…"

"Sakura-chan," Naruto growled out, "let's go, you _have_ to help."

And with her mission entirely forgotten, Sakura jumped down and prepared to defend her unconscious friends.

 _My fault,_ her mind screamed at her, _all my fault_.

Lifting her head to follow them, the sight of Naruto's appearance scared her. Red eyes, elongated teeth, red-orange chakra slowly bubbling up around him. As Naruto's body fought against her toxin, the Kyuubi struggled as well, taking advantage of Naruto's weak state in an attempt to gain control.

Her arm, where the Kyuubi's tail had struck her months ago, began to throb as she remembered the state that Naruto was in.

This was not good.

"Naruto, the nine-tails—"

"I know," he spoke through clenched teeth, fully aware of the Kyuubi's chakra slipping out, "It's fine. Come on."

As they turned to move, Hinata spoke, her head now limply lying against Naruto's chest. Sakura knew it would be a matter of minutes before the girl was unconscious as well.

"They're not attacking them," she spoke suddenly, her voice weak but filled with confusion and suspicion, "they're apprehending them."

"Can you see what village they're from?" Sakura asked, preparing herself to do as much fighting as her body could handle.

"They're ANBU, but I don't know where they're from." She was frowning. "I don't understand. They aren't binding their arms or anything. They're just taking them back toward…"

And even with her eyes closed Sakura could still see the exact moment the confusion turned into shock.

"They're taking them back toward Fire Country. Toward Konoha." And seconds later, her byakugan finally gave out, her body unable to keep her doujutsu on. "I can't see any more. I'm sorry."

"They're from Konoha?!" Naruto exclaimed. "Danzo said that we could find you. He said there wouldn't be ANBU as long as we brought you back."

"Maybe he anticipated this," Hinata gasped weakly, her breath starting to give out; within the minute, she'd be out cold. "Maybe they're back-up."

"But he said he wouldn't do that!" Naruto yelled out of frustration.

"He lied, Naruto," Sakura eventually spoke. "They aren't going anywhere without me."

"Come on then," he urged, and despite his frustration, Sakura could see his panic and anger slowly dissipating as the red faded from his eyes and his teeth returned to their normal length. And then she remembered that he trusted these ANBU. That he believed they were here to genuinely help.

That he was one of the people who still thought Tsunade had died naturally.

"I still can't go, Naruto. I'm sorry, I have to do this."

"No, Sakura—hey!" He immediately turned toward where they could now see the ANBU begin approaching them, "Over here! Hey!"

As he started shouting toward the Konoha shinobi, Sakura turned around and started to run, jumping back into the trees and pushing her legs forward, hard and fast.

She hadn't made it fifty meters before a scream pierced the air.

 _Hinata_.

Skidding to a stop, she turned around just in time to watch a kunai flying through the air toward her.

Diving down out of the trees she rolled as she hit the ground and was immediately on her feet, running back toward Naruto and Hinata without thinking twice.

Another scream. This time from Naruto. An angry, frustrated scream.

 _To the left_ , her instincts screamed at her. And with a quick duck, she shot forward, a kunai in one hand and the other clenched into a chakra-laced fist, _barely_ missing being struck by a flurry of shuriken. Stopping abruptly she jumped backward, dodging another set of shuriken. _Above you_ , her senses automatically picked up.

Two ANBU were directly on her, relentlessly throwing weapons her way.

Another kunai went flying, and Sakura barely moved in time for it to miss striking her square in the face. Instead, it grazed her cheek; the wound was deep but it was something she could easily ignore. And when, seconds later, she felt a single shuriken embed itself in her left shoulder, she gritted her teeth and swore.

They were taking cover in the treetops above and in the greenery that surrounded her. As long as she couldn't see them directly it would be hard—almost impossible—to fight back.

So instead of doing just that, she decided to go on the defensive.

With a chakra-laden fist she punched the ground, causing the Earth to crumble beneath her and the trees to uproot themselves.

She was sprinting forward before the two ANBU even knew what had happened. Seconds later, another shout pierced the air.

"Hey! Stop it! It's us; _we're on your fucking side_! Hey— _Hinata!_ Let go of her! STOP IT!"

She was close and she knew it. The only thing she could think of though was ' _why were Konoha's ANBU attacking_ '? It made sense for them to attack her; after all, she was technically a missing-nin. But to attack Naruto and Hinata made no sense.

So, she yelled right back.

"They aren't with me!" She screamed, hoping that the ANBU would hear her. "They're not doing anything wrong! You hear me!?"

The last thing Sakura needed was for them to think that her friends were accomplices in her plan, or that they were helping her to escape. She didn't want them to criminalize her friends for a misunderstanding.

Just then, she caught sight of Naruto in the distance. Hinata was no longer in his arms and he was constantly dodging, jumping, and avoiding their attacks, screaming at them to stop, to listen, to realize _that they were on the same side_. That's when it dawned on Sakura.

Naruto still trusted them; that was why he wasn't attacking. He was on the defensive cause he didn't want to hurt them.

 _No._

When they stopped throwing weapons and instead approached him calmly, she could see Naruto's stance relax drastically, finally relieved that they'd heard him and stopped their assault. Sakura couldn't collect the air fast enough to scream towards him, to warn him, before one of the ANBU slowly approached him from behind and in a split-second, launched several senbon at him.

As his body his the ground, Sakura let out a gut-wrenching scream.

Landing directly before her, blocking her view of Naruto's now-collapsed form, another ANBU operative launched themselves at her, engaging in hand-to-hand combat.

She was shocked when within seconds they successfully grabbed her arm and spun her toward them, wrapping another arm around her chest, pinning her to their body.

"Don't break out of this yet," a voice whispered hurriedly, "listen to me."

Her eyes widened and she gasped, " _Sai_."

"You're going to need to incapacitate me and travel east. Straight east. Whatever you do, don't stop." With his free hand he carefully slipped something into the top of her blouse, "They'll be too occupied with circling around you that they won't think to travel straight. After about an hour, cut sharply, either North or South. You should lose them within the next couple of hours."

"But—what—"

"And remember: look to the Sun."

"Wait—Sai—"

" _Now._ "

And without a second thought, she broke out of his grip, spun on him, and hit the back of his neck, immediately rendering him unconscious.

Turning east, she ran.

Heartbeat pounding in her ears, she ran as fast as she'd ever run in her entire life.

Her thoughts were racing a million miles an hour, but even despite the restlessness of her thoughts, she couldn't seem to sort through them. The only thing that ran on repeat through her troubled mind was the fact that Sai had helped her. Which only meant one thing.

 _He knew_.

After about a half an hour, as her adrenaline slowly began to ebb, she began to slow down; not a significant amount, but enough that she noticed within a couple of minutes. Digging a soldier pill of her pack, she swallowed it quickly and forced her legs forward.

Minutes later, the sound of metal against metal almost caused her to jump out of her skin.

With a quick look around her, she found nothing in sight; no ANBU to see, not even a single bird in the sky. The sound confused her; why would she be hearing the sounds of battle if it _was_ ANBU. They wouldn't be so foolish as to make their presence known before attacking her.

Again, more noises echoed through the forest, indicative that a fight was indeed going on somewhere around her.

Stopping abruptly, she launched herself high up into the trees, using chakra to climb as high into the tree as she could without it breaking. From there, she masked her chakra as best as she could and listened.

It didn't take long for her patience and silence to be rewarded as more sounds of a scuffle fell upon her searching ears. Several meters ahead of her, there was a battle waging.

With as much care as possible, Sakura jumped from treetop to treetop, being sure to make little noise. If she was to continue East, like Sai instructed her, she needed to get to get passed this and quickly. Only a few meters away from the fight, Sakura suddenly found herself jumping backward, toward the tree she'd just leapt from.

An enormous ball of fire lit up the forest, the flames engulfing the trees and stretching up toward the sky. The heat was incredible and as she watched it in awe, she leaned back subconsciously, trying not to get herself burned.

She'd only known one person in her life that could perform fire jutsu at such a scale.

As the flames dissipated, she immediately shot forward through the tree tops again, doing her best to avoid directly grabbing the scorched and still-burning wood of some of the trees. Despite the large-scale attack, the sounds of a fight didn't cease. Moving so quickly she almost flew right over top of the battle; grabbing a branch she quickly spun herself around, landing quietly just above where the shinobi were.

They were moving quickly, but the moment she spotted it—the red and white fan—she gasped, her suspicions confirmed.

But she didn't have enough time to let the shock take over before she saw something that he apparently didn't. An ANBU operative diving straight towards his back, arm cocked back, kunai in their grasp.

" _Sasuke-kun!_ "

As he launched out of the way—he _had_ known the ANBU was behind him, she realized too late—his head immediately shot up.

The moment she met his blood red eyes she could see the surprise in them; she could only imagine he could see her own shock through her own eyes.

Her presence had caught him off guard. And that was when an ANBU's kunai struck him, the knife sinking into his neck.

A scream ripped its way out of her throat—the sound was powerful, piercing, _hysterical_ —and in the blink of an eye, she was on the ground, fists raised, and adrenaline pumping.

It all happened too quickly for her to register, but within minutes, all five ANBU operatives were incapacitated.

Before her final opponent fell unconscious she'd turned around and sprinted back toward Sasuke, literally skidding to a stop by his side. He was on his knees, one arm on the ground and the other grasping his neck tightly, trying to stifle the bleeding, yet even despite the pressure he was applying, the dark blood steadily seeped out between his fingers and beneath his palm.

"Sasuke-kun," she gasped, "stop moving, look at me." Placing a hand on his back and the other on his chest, she was relieved when he didn't flinch away from her touch. But when she tried pushing him backward, so he'd be lying down, he resisted. "Sas—"

"S'op," he rasped out. "Don'—" but as he attempted to speak some more he began to cough, blood coming out of his mouth as he fought to regain his breath. The scariest

Sakura gritted her teeth, and fought back angry tears. "No. Lie down or you are going to bleed out and _die_." Without removing her hands she pressed down again, "please," she begged, her voice firm and eyes hard.

Without acknowledging her he willingly complied, allowing Sakura to push him onto his back. As soon as his head was resting against the ground, Sakura went to work.

Wrapping her fingers around his bloody hand, she gently pulled at it, frowning when he didn't remove it from his neck immediately. "I'm a medic-nin, Sasuke-kun," she explained firmly, "let go and let me see."

Their eyes met again—his sharingan gone and the black color she was so familiar with staring back at her—and she pleaded with him silently. _Let me help you_.

Complying, he allowed her to wrap her fingers around his hand fully, and pull the bloody appendage away from the wound. Her hands were pressed against his neck immediately, the green glow she was so used to producing, lighting her hands with highly condensed chakra. Within seconds, she'd examined the extent of his wounds and was healing them as quickly as possible.

The kunai had torn through muscle, nicked the cartilage of his wind pipe, and completely severed his jugular.

 _Shit_.

Muscle was easy to mend back together, cartilage was simple to repair, but veins and arteries had always been in a different class.

Remaining on her knees, she tried hard to ignore the feeling of wetness against her legs; she didn't need to look down to know her knees were probably coated in his blood and to know that they were sitting in a pool of dark-red.

But despite her panic and shock, still not allowing for her to fully react to what was going on, she worked diligently, putting every ounce of effort and concentration into healing the vein. Allowing her eyes to flicker up toward his face, she was panicked to see his eyes closed.

"Hey, Sasuke-kun," she spoke firmly, "stay with me."

To her relief he immediately opened his dark eyes, staring directly up at her.

She sighed audibly, "Good. Okay. Don't fall asleep, okay?" Focusing back on re-stitching his neck back together, she tried hard to ignore the fact that his gaze was centered entirely on her, not once straying from her face. Only a few more minutes, and he'd be out of the woods.

When he gripped one of her wrists tightly, she had to fight back a flinch. "I'm sorry, I know it hurts but I'll be—"

Mid-sentence, she felt the breath fly out of her lungs and suddenly she was on the ground.

"Sasuke-kun! What are…"

She held back a gasp as she saw him sitting up, arm extended and the remnants of his _chidori_ dissipating. Turning around to gaze behind her she could feel her heart sink as she saw the ANBU operative struck through the chest with Sasuke's sword, pinned against the tree behind him.

As the last bursts of lightning coursed through the ANBU's body, their arms fell from where they'd gripped the sword in front of them and laid limply by their side. Sakura could tell just by looking at them that they were dead.

Tears stinging her eyes she whipped her head back toward where Sasuke was sitting, ready to release a torrent of screams at him, only to see him fall back to the ground. A kunai embedded in his upper arm.

A kunai that had undoubtedly been meant for her.

The thought did nothing to dissipate the tears that were still threatening to spill.

Hands glowing again she wordlessly placed her hands back over his neck. When he had pushed her down and out of the way, she had been caught off guard and unable to remove her chakra from the inside of his neck. She'd ended up tearing his jugular vein with her chakra, undoing all the progress she'd made.

And now, he had a kunai in his arm, too. Thankfully she could see that the wound wasn't severe, and she'd be able to get to it after she repaired his more severe injuries.

Out of the corner of her eye she watched as his chest rose and sank slowly and steadily, a relief to see. He was unconscious, but Sakura was keeping close watch on his system and knew he would be alright. Several minutes later, when she had fixed the vein and was beginning to finish up sewing his muscle back together, she almost jumped when she felt the cold metal of a blade press against the side of her neck.

"Well, well, well… what do we have here?"


	4. Chapter 4

She inhaled deeply, swallowing a lump in her throat as she straightened up. She never once removed her hands from Sasuke's neck—she was almost done, she couldn't stop now.

"Who the hell are you?" The voice spoke, and as the blade pressed against her neck she could feel it slice the skin where contact was made. Frustrated at being caught so off guard she gritted her teeth and inhaled deeply. The only thing she could think to do at this point was comply.

"I'm Haruno Sakura. Of Konoha."

"What are you doing to Sasuke?"

Her eyes widened. So this person knew Sasuke? Was it someone who had been connected to Orochimaru? She couldn't think who else it could be, or who else Sasuke could've teamed up with.

"I'm healing him. He was ambushed and gravely injured. I mean no harm."

"Konoha, huh? What are you even doing here?"

She contemplated making up a story, but she didn't know how this person would accept anything other than the truth.

"I'm a defector. I left a couple of weeks ago. I know Sasuke-kun."

"Sure," he scoffed. "And I suppose your buddies we just had to kill are all defectors, too?" The blade pressed against her skin with more pressure. Sakura could feel the blood begin to trickle down her neck.

Her heart clenched painfully in her chest. Had they killed the ANBU members? All of them? _Even Sai?_

Despite her situation Konoha was still her village, her home. And the people of her village were still incredibly important to her. Knowing that because of her, they'd been dispatched to retrieve her and were now dead because of her.

 _This wasn't supposed to happen. None of this was supposed to happen_. _What have I done?_

"Talk," he demanded. "Or I'll cut off your head right now."

"I have no current affiliations with the Hidden Leaf currently. I don't know what I can say to make you believe me." She took in a shaky breath. "I really do know Sasuke-kun. We were teammates back when he was in the village. Before he left for Orochimaru." The words still haunted her despite their truth. "Before he left to kill his brother."

"Y'know, if you're lying, I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I killed you right now."

"And if I'm not?" She challenged, feeling bold.

When the blade was removed from her neck, she had to resist the urge to jump up, turn around, and take a fighting stance. But Sasuke was still beneath her, and she still had work to do on him, so she couldn't stop now.

She could hear the sound of the blade being sunk into the dirt. "Well," the voice let out a short laugh, "Sasuke would probably be pissed. And I don't feel like listening to him bitch."

A couple minutes later his neck was entirely sealed up, as good as new with nothing more than a faint pink line of thin fresh skin where his neck had been previously spilling blood heavily.

Removing her hands from his body she couldn't help but notice how they shook. Slowly she stood up and turned around, looking at this stranger for the first time.

Light blue hair fell down past his ears and lavender eyes stared back at her. An eyebrow was raised questioningly at her as he took in her appearance, just as she was doing to him. He donned a black cloak and was leaning up against the sword nonchalantly, one hand on his hip and his head cocked to the side.

Her eyes widened as they fluttered back toward the sword and recognition kicked in.

"That's Zabuza's sword."

His curious expression transformed into an irritated one. " _Was_ ," he corrected with annoyance, "and now it's mine."

"And you are?" As she moved around Sasuke to sit at his opposite side, preparing to remove the kunai from his arm and fix the wound, she let her hand rest against her own neck for a moment, quickly stitching the torn flesh back together.

That's when he grinned. A wide, pointy-toothed grin along with an expression that screamed 'mischief'.

"Hozuki Suigetsu. Second Coming of the Demon. Future leader of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist," he unearthed his sword and swung it over his shoulder. "And the best shinobi this side of the continent."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "That's quite a resume you have," she spoke, the comment coming out a little more snarky than she intended.

"And that's quite an attitude you have there," he retorted, narrowing his eyes at her.

Ignoring him, Sakura went to work on Sasuke's arm, carefully removing it from the sleeve of his own black cloak in order to have better access to the wound. She would certainly have enough chakra to heal Sasuke up, but her reserves were going to be dangerously close to empty by the time she was done; after everything that had happened today, she was ridiculously tired.

She hesitated as she healed him and made the decision to only heal him enough for the wound to be minor. In case the man with Sasuke couldn't be trusted she needed to be able to defend herself.

Reaching into her pack she pulled out some bandages and began to wrap his arm up.

"You're not going to heal him all the way?" Suigetsu asked, striding over to her as she bandaged Sasuke's arm.

She bit her lip as she finished wrapping him up; he'd seen right through her.

"It's fine now. I don't want to heal anything unnecessary to heal. He'll finish healing on his own."

"Whatever you say, pinky." He said as if they were close friends. Stretching his arms up, he yawned and looked off into the forest. "I wonder where those two freaks went…"

Gently placing Sasuke's arm back in his sleeve she looked up at him, surprised. "There are more of you?"

He laughed. "You think I could deal with this one all by myself?"

If she wasn't so tired and if she were in any other situation she may have cracked a smile, but she wasn't in the mood to deal with jokes at the moment. Before she could ask him any further questions, the sound of people approaching caused her attention to turn to the woods directly behind her.

"I'm so done. I'm tired. I want a shower. And why the _hell_ did Konoha ninjas jump us?"

"Ah, speak of the devil," Suigetsu grinned at her, "here she comes."

Sakura stood and watched as two people—also wearing black cloaks similar to Sasuke's and Suigetsu's—walked out of the woods. A woman with fiery red hair and glasses, and a huge monstrous man who towered over the woman.

"Suigetsu what— _Sasuke!_ " In seconds the woman had ran toward them and immediately fell to Sasuke's side, tears in her eyes. "What happened?!" Her eyes immediately fell on Sakura. "Who are you? What are you doing here? _What happened?!_ "

Caught off guard by her emotional display Sakura stared back at her for a few anxious seconds.

Who was this woman? A teammate? An ally? A lover?

"I'm from Konoha. I—well, they were attacking Sasuke and they got him in the neck and he was bleeding out so—"

The woman gasped and reached up, brushing the hair away from his neck. Her touch was so tender and she acted so boldly, so unafraid that it could only be from someone who knew Sasuke intimately.

Sakura forced herself to look away as a lump lodged itself in her throat.

"Pinky here healed him. He's fine. Out cold though." As if emphasizing his point, he kicked Sasuke's leg, prompting the woman to swing at him with frustration.

"We need to continue," the larger man spoke as he approached the group, causing Sakura to jump. She'd almost forgotten he was there; his voice was much softer, much gentler than she expected from such a large person. "In case there will be more Hidden Leaf shinobi."

"What do they want?" The woman asked, finally standing up. "What do _you people_ want?" She spat at Sakura, her anger palpable.

"I'm not with them. I—I defected a couple of weeks ago. They were after me."

"Why the fuck attack us then?" Suigetsu asked, a slight pout on his features.

"Sasuke has been wanted for a few years now," the large man spoke, leaning down only to pick Sasuke's up body easily, as if he weighed nothing.

"It was definitely a coincidence," Sakura spoke. "I didn't know Sasuke was in the area, I've just been trying to get to Oto. They were chasing me. They were after me."

"How do we know you're not just sent to attack Sasuke? How do we know you're not with them?" The woman asked, arms crossed and defensive look on her face. Sakura understood the suspicion, but the fact that she was being accused of attacking Sasuke made something in her gut twist.

"I don't know, Karin." Suigetsu lazily pointed toward the dead body of the ANBU operative just behind them. "I don't think someone aligned with Konoha would let Sasuke kill their pals."

She couldn't even look toward the body of the shinobi; knowing she was responsible for their death made her feel a type of pain she'd never felt before. Disgusting, crippling guilt.

"Why are you travelling to Oto?" The soft voice spoke up behind her as he adjusted his hold on Sasuke. "What business do you have there?"

"I—I'm looking for someone…" She didn't want to tell them; she _couldn't_ tell them. This was her business and hers alone. She didn't want anyone else dead because of her, strangers or not.

"Let's go," the woman named Karin turned and began walking back into the forest, hands on her hips and clearly not happy.

As the others turned and began to follow Sakura found herself stuck where she stood. Watching the man walk away with Sasuke in his arms made her chest tighten, her heart aching with every step they took farther away.

"Hey, pinky," Suigetsu called, turning around and facing her, "you coming or not?"

Sakura knew she shouldn't. She knew that she would be better off turning around, walking away, and continuing on with her mission. She had to find Kakashi. She had to help her village.

But she was frighteningly unprepared. That had become painfully clear to her as the past couple weeks had passed. She was navigating these countries blindly, with only basic information about their geography and politics. She wasn't ready for this mission she'd given herself, she wasn't ready to take on Konoha's corrupt leadership, and yet she'd jumped into this because she had been so worked up over Tsunade's death.

She couldn't do it and acknowledging that fact was so painful for her that she almost immediately burst into tears. But as she looked back at Suigetsu, who was only standing a few feet from her, and as she looked at the other two members of Sasuke's group, who were also looking back at her expectantly, an idea struck her.

A terrible, awful idea. But it was the only alternative she could think up other than running blindly across the continent by herself. Sakura knew she couldn't do it.

At least… she knew she couldn't do it alone.

With newly found confidence, she lifted her head high and with determined steps she walked forward, following these strangers into the woods.

* * *

The inn that they'd found only took two hours to get to while running; it was in a tiny town, and Sakura was entirely unsure where they were exactly. Upon arrival they simply walked inside, bypassing the old man at the front desk—who didn't even bat an eye at the sight of an unconscious man being carried—before walking straight up a flight of stairs.

The room was larger than she expected as she followed them inside. A few mats lay spread around the room, and there were even some clothes in a few of the corners. The room certainly seemed lived-in, she mused. Perhaps this was a regular place where they stayed. It would explain their nonchalant entrance, unconscious Sasuke and all.

The large man, who she learned was named Juugo, placed Sasuke on one of the mats before covering him with blankets and leaving the room entirely. Suigetsu placed his sword against the far wall by the window before haphazardly throwing his cloak on the floor and striding over to another one of the mats, flopping down face-first.

"Karin," he mumbled loudly into the mat, "get pinky settled will you? 'm too tired."

"Of course you are," she grumbled as she took off her sandals on the other side of the room, "Lazy ass." Making eye contact with Sakura she nodded her head, gesturing for her to approach.

When she was finally a couple feet from the woman, she stopped and stood there awkwardly, watching as she slipped off her own cloak and adjusted the straps of her top. "There's an extra mat and extra blankets in the closet," she threw a thumb over her shoulder, "you can set up over here if you want. Suigetsu's a creep."

Sakura almost laughed when she watched the blue-haired nin lift a tired arm toward them, only to flip Karin off.

Trying not to look like she was uncomfortable with the entire situation, she quickly stepped around where Karin was to retrieve a mat. Several minutes later she was set up a few meters away from Karin, wanting to stay close to the only other woman in the group, but not trusting her enough to be _too_ close.

"Listen," she looked up only to see Karin staring directly at her, "I don't trust you. I don't know how you know Sasuke. I don't exactly care right now. I just want to make sure that you know that if you attempt to hurt him, I'll kill you."

"Got it," she nodded, fully understanding her mistrust. It unsettled her though, especially since this was where she'd be sleeping for an undisclosed amount of time. But knowing that their distrust was mutual actually served to ease her fears. Karin would be waiting for her to make a move and the same went for her, leaving them at a strange type of stalemate.

Despite being so tired, and knowing in a part of her mind that she would be safe, that these people wouldn't be likely to attack her in her sleep, her logical side still knew she had to be careful and make sure that nothing would happen.

Long after Suigetsu and Karin had fallen asleep, Juugo finally came back into the room. He was so quiet that Sakura almost didn't notice him enter. He was incredibly stealthy for such a large man; but regardless of size all shinobi had to be quiet on their feet.

Sakura watched from where she laid on her mat, remaining quiet and still but watching him nonetheless; if he noticed she was awake then she wouldn't mind. Something about his presence seemed soothing.

Juugo walked over to where Sasuke lay, observing him for a few seconds before retreating into the far corner of the room, closest to Suigetsu. She continued to watch him as he laid down, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

She was so curious, with so many questions floating through her mind.

Who were these people? Who were they to _Sasuke_? For what reason did they band together like this? Are they the reason Sasuke hadn't returned to the village yet?

After all, Itachi was dead. Sasuke's goal was accomplished. Why _wouldn't_ he return?

Eyelids feeling heavy, Sakura eventually fell into a light, restless sleep.

.

.

She was halfway between asleep and awake when she sound of floorboards creaking garnered her attention. She attempted to ignore the sound, but when she noticed that the noise was growing louder, she opened her eyes slightly.

Sasuke was quickly approaching her, an angry look on his face and his eyes bright red.

Sakura rolled out of the way just as Sasuke's hands reached out for her.

Launching upward she jumped back, slamming herself against the wall. She heard the crackling of chidori before she saw it and quickly ducked, letting his arm fly right above her. Launching herself forward she tried to think quickly.

Throwing a quick jab toward his extended arm, Sakura aimed directly for his wound that wasn't fully healed. Hearing him hiss in pain, she knew she'd struck her mark. Flipping herself forward she ran to the opposite side of the room and lifted her fists, ready to fight despite not knowing why she had to.

"Holy shit—Sasuke, what the fuck?" Suigetsu yelled as he jumped up out of a dead sleep, standing only a few steps away from Sakura.

"What are you doing here, Sakura?" he growled, staring at her angrily with his sharingan. The look he gave her was so foreign that for a moment she wondered if he was really seeing her; or if this was really Sasuke.

"I'm here because I saved your life." She blurted out, her voice shaking. She was shocked. Never in a million years did she imagine that he'd try to attack her as she slept, especially after healing a deadly wound.

"It's your fault I got hit." He accused, eyes still staring _through_ her, not at her.

"It's not my fault you weren't paying attention to the enemy."

The atmosphere was incredibly tense and for a long moment it was incredibly quiet. Throughout their screaming match, both Juugo and Karin had woken abruptly and were now on their feet, their guards up.

Sasuke was so worked up that he was panting; Sakura knew it wasn't from exhaustion, only _anger_.

"Why aren't you in the village?"

"Why aren't you?" She retorted quickly. Itachi was dead, and Sasuke had accomplished his goal. He needed to return. _He was supposed to come back_.

"Stop avoiding my questions…" he warned, his voice low as he began to approach her slowly. Sharingan staring at her, he spoke again, his words slow and deadly. "Why are you here?"

"I—I…" and for some reason, she couldn't say it. She couldn't tell him about how she'd left Konoha, about how she was a missing-nin, or about how Danzo was trying to eliminate her.

"She's a missing-nin, Sasuke." It was Karin who spoke up, Sakura saw out of the corner of her eye. The woman was staring at the exchange with wide, nervous eyes as she reached for her glasses beside her mat.

"I don't believe that for a second."

"It's true," Sakura confirmed, finally finding her voice. She would've shot Karin a thankful look, but at this moment it was too dangerous to take her eyes off of him, even for a split-second. "I left a few weeks ago."

"Why?" He demanded, getting closer with every steady step he took. "You'd never abandon Konoha."

"I had to," she spoke desperately, "I couldn't stay there or he'd just kill more people, like he's trying to kill me. I couldn't stay there Sasuke-kun, I _couldn't_."

He was still for a moment, halting his steps as he stared at her strangely. "Who?" He asked, his voice quiet. When she didn't answer him for a few seconds his patience began to wear thin. " _Who_ , Sakura?"

"Danzo," her voice broke as she spoke his name, "Danzo is trying to kill me."

The reaction that Sasuke had to Danzo's name wasn't something that she'd ever expected to see from him. Within seconds his expression switched from shocked, to pensive, to a look of pure _fury_.

"Danzo." He repeated the name, the sound of it coming out with an air of clear disgust. "Shimura Danzo?"

She nodded slowly. "He killed Tsunade-sama. He killed our Hokage. He took over and he's turning the village into a dangerous place and I know he's just going to get rid of more people." She didn't even notice that she was crying until the tears streaked down her cheeks. "I can't trust anyone there. I had to leave. I have to stop him before he kills someone else."

"Danzo is Hokage?" Sasuke spoke quietly.

"Wait, how did he become Hokage if he killed the _other_ Hokage?" Suigetsu asked, making his presence known once more. "Isn't that like… I don't know… murder? A _crime_ in most places?"

"No one knows." Sakura spoke, lifting her hand and wiping the tears from her face. "And the few who do know won't admit that anything happened; they're too scared to. But I know he killed her, and I can prove it." She finally moved her eyes from Sasuke's and turned to glance at Karin, Suigetsu, and Juugo. "But I can't do it by myself."

"You want him gone." Sasuke stated. Sakura's eyes fell back on his, only to see his sharingan gone and his normal dark eyes staring back into hers.

Sakura nodded. "Yes. I want him gone."

When Suigetsu let out a quick laugh and walked over toward her, clapping a hand on her shoulder, she gazed at him with confusion. "Well, whady'a know?" He grinned a dark, toothy smile. "So do we."

Still confused, she watched as Suigetsu walked toward Sasuke, before ultimately passing right by him. "Thanks for the pleasant wake up." He said sarcastically as he opened the door to the room and promptly exited.

As if she could sense the terrible tension in the room, Karin stood up next, grabbing a small pack before making an exit of her own. Juugo stood by for another long moment, but when Sasuke looked over and nodded to him—just a slight tilt of his head—Juugo then, almost reluctantly it seemed, left the room as well.

"So…" Sakura spoke after another minute of silence between the two of them. She'd never imagined their next meeting to be like this: both of them missing-nin, hiding out near Oto, her confiding in him about the corrupt guidance of their village after he'd attempted to attack her. No, this was never how she imagined things to go. "What do we do now?"

He began walking once more up to her, and that's when Sakura realized just how tall he'd grown. Where he'd only been slightly taller than her a couple years ago, now she had to lift her head to look him in the eye. His presence was suffocating and _powerful_ , as he leered down at her, stopping only a foot away.

Before, having him in such close proximity to her would have been a dream come true, but now she just felt uncomfortable. He was watching her with an indiscernible look and as he lifted his chin, looking down his nose at her, she took note of the arrogance that he exuded.

She could've laughed. At least some things hadn't changed.

"I'll make you a deal."

She raised an eyebrow, her hands finding her hips easily as she waited for him to continue. "Okay…"

"I'll help you remove Danzo from power."

But Sakura could tell that it wouldn't be as simple as that. "What's the catch?"

"You let me kill Danzo. And you let me eliminate the council."

"No," she immediately replied. "I'll agree to Danzo but not the council. No," she repeated, hands falling from her hips as she shook her head.

"If you don't agree, then we have no deal, and you need to get out of my sight."

Mouth open, she could only stare at him in disbelief. "Why?" Her voice started off quiet, but as she spoke she felt herself grow angrier and more frustrated. "What does it mean to you? Why the council? What have they ever done to you?! Why do you even want Danzo dead? At least _I_ have a reason! He killed my teacher—"

"And he killed my clan."

He spoke the statement so lowly, that Sakura almost didn't hear it. But even though his words were quiet, she'd heard them loud and clear.

"What…? No, but. Itachi—"

"It was a mission. Given by Danzo. Approved of by the council. And the Sandaime did nothing to stop it."

"No… no…" she was shaking her head. That couldn't be true. Itachi had been the one to murder the Uchiha. Sasuke himself had seen his own parents killed before his eyes. There was no way it was a mission… there was no way that it had been approved.

There was no way the Third Hokage would've let that happen.

"It's true. Konoha has been led by monsters with more blood on their hands then they care to admit. It's been like this our whole lives, Sakura."

As he spoke her name, she shivered, wrapping her arms around her midsection as she wracked her brain. It didn't make sense. It just didn't make _any_ sense.

"Danzo has always been murderous scum. This is nothing new. They're corrupt. They're the reason my family is dead." His voice slowly got louder as he spoke, moving closer to her, making it so that there was no way that she could avoid his words. "They're murderers, Sakura. Konoha has been led by murderers for as long as it's been around. They don't care about us, they never have."

She was shaking her head as he spoke, tears spilling out without warning. It couldn't be true. It just couldn't.

And then, the pounding resumed.

Gripping her head she gasped as the pain tore through her. Eyes closed and teeth clenched, she couldn't stop the groan of pain that escaped from her throat. Before, the pain had been nearly unbearable, but for some reason, this was on a new level that far exceeded what she'd felt before.

The pain was so intense that it was almost numbing her senses; somewhere in the back of her mind, a voice was begging for death, for the pain to stop, to end the torture.

She barely felt herself fall to her knees. She would've fallen entirely over if it weren't for the fact that Sasuke had grabbed her shoulders and was shaking her roughly. He was shouting her name, frustrated at her lack of response.

"Sakura—look at me—what the hell is wrong with—"

A scream ripped its way out of her, deafening even to herself. And then things were white.

She was confused for a few long seconds. What happened? Was she unconscious? Was she dead? There was no more pain, instead she felt light. So light in fact, that she almost felt dizzy.

" _You aren't going to either of those places."_

The sound of Itachi's voice was all-consuming, and suddenly she was staring him in the eyes again, back in the bottom of the valley beside the small village. It was as if she'd shot back in time, and now she could remember.

" _They're dead ends."_

His eyes were spinning.

" _Pointless."_

His voice was hypnotizing.

" _A waste of time."_

She didn't recall him gripping her arms before, but she could feel it now.

" _Instead, you're going to go somewhere else."_

And once again, the throbbing was back. She knew at this moment that this wasn't death; if the pain wasn't over, then neither was her life.

" _Sasuke will kill me soon. When that happens you will wake up and travel to the Hidden Sound. You will abandon your previous leads. You will not remember and you will only be free from the pain when you've accomplished this: find Sasuke. Once you do that, team up with him to devise a plan. Take down Danzo together."_

The pain increased as the white began to fade, the sound of Itachi's voice disappearing along with it.

" _I entrust this to you, Haruno Sakura. Help bring my village to justice."_

Then, blackness.

* * *

She woke up with a start, shooting upward. Her hands immediately reached forward to grip Itachi's cloak, but she only grasped at the air, her hands falling onto her own lap. She began gasping immediately, her breath coming in short, quick pants as she sat up in her mat, shaking terribly.

"Here." She almost jumped out of her skin at the sound of Juugo's voice at her side. In his hand was a glass of water. "Drink," he instructed quietly, handing her the glass.

With shaking fingers she gripped the glass tightly, but when she attempted to sip the water she found that she was simply shaking too severely to hold the glass steady. Without being prompted, Juugo then gently plucked the glass from her hands and held it to her lips, tilting it slightly so she could drink.

After she drank nearly half of the glass he pulled it down and set it on the ground.

"Th—thank you," she stuttered, attempting to shoot him a grateful look, although it probably just looked pitiful to him.

"Don't worry." He smiled, "Do you need anything at all? Food? Another blanket."

She shook her head. "No thank you. I'm fine at the moment." Allowing her eyes to scan the room she found it empty except for the two of them. "Where is everyone?" Noting the darkness of the room, she could only assume that it was night. She was unconscious the entire day; but when she thought about the last time she'd only been out for the night, she found out she'd been out for _days_. "And how long have I been unconscious?"

"Suigetsu and Karin are in another village, collecting supplies. They'll be back after the sun rises. Sasuke is nearby." His gaze turned toward the window. "It's only after midnight. But you've been unconscious since before the sun was up. So about twenty-or-so hours."

"Better than I thought," she muttered to herself as her tremors began to subside. With more confidence she reached for the water glass and finished its contents, her hands no longer shaking. "What… what happened?"

Juugo frowned, looking away from her and towards the doorway. He eventually spoke after a few seconds. "I'm not entirely sure." He looked back towards her with a look of curiosity and concern. "None of us are."

At that moment, Sasuke walked through the door, hood up and face covered; Sakura could just barely see the unruly strands peeking out from under the hood's cover. Closing the door quietly behind him he turned toward the two of them, pulled his hood down to reveal a serious look, and walked toward them.

Juugo excused himself silently, not uttering another word to Sakura as he took back the glass, stood up, and left the room entirely.

Silence took hold of the two of them instantly. Still sitting up on her mat, her lap covered with layers of blankets, she was sure she looked like an absolute mess; not to mention quite vulnerable. He stood above her, looking down at her with his stern eyes, as if studying every inch of her.

Suddenly she felt incredibly self-conscious. Without thinking she grabbed one of the blankets and pulled it up a little higher, sliding her legs toward her so she was able to hug her knees to her chest. Taking note of the motion immediately, Sasuke looked away and turned on his heel.

Sakura watched as he took off his cloak and placed his katana next to his mat. Unhooking his weapons pouch, he also let that fall to the ground, the sound so loud in comparison to the deafening silence that Sakura almost flinched.

When he turned and made his way back toward her, she was surprised—for lack of a better word—when he sat beside her on the end of her mat.

With one leg lying flat on the ground and the other bent for him to rest his arm, he stared for a long moment, simply gazing into the dark room. Not about to break the silence, Sakura merely wrapped her arms around her legs and rested her chin against her knees, waiting patiently for him to speak.

"What happened back there?" He spoke without looking at her, but after a few quiet seconds he turned his head toward her, making eye contact. "That was _not_ a reaction to what I was saying. Your eyes. They were red. What happened?"

"Wait, what?" she whispered, confused. Sasuke merely stared back at her eyes, appearing to study the color closely, perhaps waiting for it to change. "What do you mean?"

"When you screamed. Your eyes flashed red, like sharingan." His hands opened and closed, clenching into fists, as if he were utterly frustrated at his words. "Then you were unconscious. The same thing happened when I saw you back when the ANBU attacked. Your eyes were red."

"That's why you tried to attack me?" She spoke bluntly, recalling Sasuke's near-attack on her less than twenty-four hours prior. He didn't reply, instead opting to break the tense eye contact they'd maintained. It was enough of a confirmation. And for a split-second, she understood his reaction; she would've been suspicious of her presence, too, if she'd been in Sasuke's shoes.

"What happened?" He asked again, voice quiet, low. It was clear he didn't want to talk any further; at least not until he got his answer.

She opened and then closed her mouth a couple of times, trying to figure out how to explain what had happened. She then realized that in order for him to understand, she had to start at the beginning. Being sure to make eye contact before she started, she inhaled deeply, unsure how he would handle what she would tell him.

"Four days before you killed Itachi I ran into him."

If it hadn't been for the fact that she watched as Sasuke stiffened she wouldn't have noticed otherwise. His expression hadn't changed as he looked her in the eyes. She idly wondered if she looked as apprehensive as she felt.

"He was with another. He had blue skin and, I know this may sound weird, but he looked like a shark."

"Kisame," Sasuke muttered under his breath. "Itachi's partner in the Akatsuki."

Sakura nodded, absorbing this information. "I tried to fight them. But I was caught in a genjutsu." Inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly she tried hard to keep the fear she felt subdued. "He talked to me a little bit and then he… he _did_ something and, god, it would give me these excruciating headaches. It felt like my skull was splitting in two.

"I only got them when I tried to think about my plans and my mission. I guess it kept me from going where I was originally going to go…" she mused, her voice trailing off as suddenly everything made sense to her. "Last night I… I remembered what happened. I remembered what he said, I mean, 'cause I'd forgotten until then. I think he repressed it from my memory…"

"What did he tell you?" Sasuke demanded quietly, clearly getting impatient at her rambling.

"He told me… that you were going to kill him. He said that I had to find you and that I had to team up with you to get rid of Danzo. And then he said that's when my pain would stop." She paused. "I was in that genjutsu for four days. I only woke up when you killed Itachi." At his disbelieving look she sighed. "You killed him early Thursday morning, didn't you?"

He only stared at her in shock, perhaps caught off guard with the information she'd given him.

Trying to avoid the thick silence, she continued to speak. "My original plan was to meet up with one of Tsunade-sama's old acquaintances, but Itachi said it wouldn't work. Then I was going to meet up with Kabuto and—"

"Why would you ever do that?" He stared at her like she was idiotic for even considering such a thing. "He's insane."

"That's what your brother told me. I guess that's why he wiped those plans from my memory."

"Kabuto would've killed you if you even tried to negotiate with him. Why would you even think about that?"

"Orochimaru is dead. Kabuto was the person who was closest to him that's still alive." She defended weakly, "Orochimaru used to have ties to Danzo. I was hoping to get some sort of incriminating evidence."

"He ordered the slaughter of my clan," he spoke darkly, "that's incriminating enough."

Sakura remained silent for almost a minute, the information that Itachi had only been following orders was finally sinking in fully.

"Why?" She whispered, her eyes drifting from his and instead focusing on her arms in front of her. "Why would they do such a thing?"

"The Uchiha were planning a coup." He explained, offering a half-shrug. "They saw no way to stop it other than to eliminate every one of them."

"But the children? The people uninvolved?!" The very idea made Sakura feel sick.

"Danzo didn't care. He wanted me dead, too." Sasuke paused, biting his bottom lip as he thought deeply. "The only reason I am still alive today—the reason I was the _only_ one to survive—is because Itachi loved me too much to kill me. That's it. He was too weak to kill me." His eyes were hard as the words came out, deadly and cold as he spoke quietly. "So he left me alive to suffer."

Covering her mouth with a hand, she had to bite back the sudden sob that almost escaped her mouth. She could feel the emotion building up in her chest but she knew she couldn't show it; not now at least. Not with Sasuke sitting right beside her. Despite her effort, tears still streamed down her cheeks.

"Sasuke-kun, I—" she reached out toward him, wanting nothing more than to comfort him.

"Don't," he spoke sternly, glaring at the arm that was outstretched, only removing his gaze from her when her arm was lowered. "I don't want your pity. I just want you to understand why I must kill them. Danzo _and_ the council."

And despite the fact that she didn't want him to kill the elderly council members, she understood. Just how many times had he been lied to? Just how many secrets had been kept from him? And just how many times had Danzo seen Sasuke walking around the village as a child after the massacre, wishing to kill him as well, _resenting_ his very existence?

If only fueled her hatred for the heavily-bandaged man.

And even though she knew the council was just as responsible, she couldn't bring it in herself to give him her immediate cooperation in his plan to kill them. Was it selfish of her? To want Danzo dead merely due to what he'd done to Tsunade, but to want the council to stay alive despite their role in the Uchiha massacre?

It was absolutely, undoubtedly selfish.

But she knew that she had no choice. If she was going to remove Danzo from power, she needed Sasuke's help. And if he was only going to help if he could kill _all_ who played a role in the massacre, she'd have to compromise.

"I'll help you, if you help me," she spoke quietly. "Help me kill Danzo, and you can take out the council, too." Her words felt treacherous, and they tasted disgusting as they fell from her mouth, but they were out there and she couldn't take them back.

Sasuke nodded, a deep frown on his features as he stared at her. Looking away, he glanced toward the window, where only the barest hint of moonlight was shining through.

"Okay," he mumbled quietly, "okay."


	5. Chapter 5

The following morning Suigetsu and Karin returned, the noise of their bickering echoing through the hallways before they'd even reached the door.

It didn't take long for Sakura to realize that the pair did not get along. _At all_.

It was almost amusing in a way, watching them interact. Snarky comments were always responded to with sarcasm or insults. A few offensive gestures here and there, and enough cursing to put Naruto and Kiba to shame. But one thing for sure was that watching the two of them certainly made the time go by faster.

"Where is your headband?" Sasuke abruptly asked her as they were packing up their gear and preparing to depart. "You can't take it with you."

Sakura was putting on the new black cloak she'd received; one of the many things Suigetsu and Karin had picked up while on their little trip. She shook her head, "I don't have it. It's back at the village. I left it with…"

And at the thought of her best friend, her heart sank.

"Naruto," she whispered, her eyes widening, "he's in trouble. He—he was following me and—and they attacked him. They attacked him and Hinata and I don't know if they're okay or not and all my friends," she gasped, inhaling deeply as the panic coursed through her, "my friends. Oh god. What if he kills them? Oh no."

" _Sakura_ ," and then he was standing before her, bending down slightly so that he was at her eye level. Despite her panic she didn't overlook the way his eyes darkened at the mention of their friend's name. "Calm down. What's the matter now?"

"I—Danzo sent Naruto and the others after me and—and I tried to escape but Naruto and Hinata followed me and the ANBU they—they _attacked_ the two of them!" Her heart sank into her stomach as she recalled that day.

"Danzo won't kill them," Sasuke said dismissively, taking a step back and looking down on her with something akin to exasperation at her outburst. "Naruto is too important of an asset, and if the Hyuuga heiress were to disappear then he'd have that to deal with, too." He turned around and resumed organizing his pack. "If anything, he has them detained or out of commission in a hospital maybe."

"How do you know he won't kill them?" She challenged, frustrated with his dismissal of her dilemma. "He's never refrained from killing people before."

"Did they know what you were doing?"

She shook her head, "I didn't tell them when I left, but I think after our encounter they had a slight idea." She sighed, "None of them believe me though."

"Good. That will work in their favor. They won't be killed."

"How can you be so sure?" She snapped.

"I'm not," he shrugged, hardly even glancing towards her, "but either you can have a fit about things you can't control, or you can accept that you have bigger, more important things to deal with right now."

Despite her anger, she knew he was right. No amount of tears shed or stress dealt with would change the situation that she and her friends were in. Her best bet was to continue along with Sasuke and his group, and to work hard to rid Danzo from power as quickly as possible.

Only then would the people she loved be safe.

Then suddenly, a thought sprang into her head.

"The ANBU know." She breathed, her memory of Sai's words now present in her mind. "The ANBU know it was Danzo. Sai told me, sort of, he—he helped me."

"Is he from the foundation?" Sakura nodded. "Then of course he'd know. Although I find it hard to believe he could tell you that…"

Sakura huffed, "And why not?"

"Because," Sasuke spoke, shooting her an impatient look, "foundation members have curse seals on their tongues that prevent them from speaking of or about Danzo. If they do then they become paralyzed."

Sakura froze at the information. "How do you know this?"

"Orochimaru."

"Ah." She thought quickly, but when she realized Sai hadn't really mentioned Danzo—verbally at least—and he hadn't revealed any sort of plan, she figured that he would be alright; or at least she hoped for it. "I'm sure he'll be okay," she spoke quietly. But her words were less for Sasuke's ears and more for her own. She needed the assurance more than anything and she knew she wouldn't get it anywhere other than herself.

"Why were you heading to Oto in the first place?" Suigetsu was the one who finally asked. He was sitting across the room, leaning against the wall and sipping water through a straw out of an opaque cup.

Sakura's frown deepened. "Danzo sent away all the special jonin on missions and they've been disappearing one by one and haven't returned to the village. I'm going to places Danzo might see as a threat to find them. Specifically my sensei." She heard Sasuke scoff and sent him a glare.

"And why is he important?" Suigetsu asked.

"He can help us."

"I thought no one believed you," Sasuke said with impatience.

Sakura bit her tongue, "I can _make_ him believe me. I just have to find him."

"This honestly sounds like a dead end to me," Karin finally chimed in from where she stood a few meters away, arms crossed and doubtful look on her face. "If he's on a mission then he's still loyal to Konoha."

"He is but I know he'll hear me out. I mean," she held her arms out, "look at me. He knows me. There's no way I'd leave the village if I didn't have a choice."

"I don't know," Karin frowned deeply, adjusting her glasses before glancing at Sasuke. "What do you think?"

Sasuke stopped moving and stood up straight, thinking to himself. After a tense moment, he sighed. "Sakura is right. There's no way Kakashi would turn on her, even if she were a missing-nin."

"And if he _does_ turn on her? Are we strong enough to kill him?"

Sakura's mouth fell open as her head shot toward Suigetsu. Before she could snap at him, Sasuke was replying.

"I can handle it," he said dismissively.

"That's not very reassuring," he grumbled under his breath. "And what the hell do we do if he isn't in Oto?" he asked, letting his head lean back against the wall, making a soft _thud_ against the wood. "Do we just keep looking?"

When he put it _that_ way, it made Sakura doubt her plan, but she shrugged. "Pretty much."

Suigetsu laughed. "Oh man, this is going to be fun." Standing up and gathering his things, he swung the large sword over his shoulder and proceeded toward the door. "I'll be waiting downstairs."

Over the next few minutes they finished packing up their gear and one by one they left the room, until only Sakura and Sasuke were left. Truthfully, Sakura had been waiting for him to leave first so that she'd have a moment of peace alone, in order to collect her thoughts and compose herself. But she was incredibly disappointed when she realized that he wasn't going anywhere without her. Currently he stood there, arms crossed watching and waiting for her to finish up.

Deep down, she felt as if she needed to thank him in some way. After all, he'd accepted her into his team with very little issues (if you didn't count almost getting attacked in her sleep), and was even taking her seriously, something he'd hardly ever done when they were younger.

Her idea was stupid, poorly thought-out, and entirely ill-conceived, but for some reason he was following her lead. This wasn't typical for him, and she didn't know how to handle him like this.

Sasuke was truly different, and it unsettled her.

"Hurry up," he ordered quietly, "I want to get on the road."

She sighed. "Why don't you wait for me down there."

"I'd rather wait for you here, now hurry."

She bit her lip. "Did you really mean what you said?" She lifted her head up and looked him in the eye. "Would you really try and kill Kakashi-sensei?"

"He is _not_ my sensei," he snapped. "I hold no loyalties to him. And if I have to, I'll do what I must."

"So what?" She let out a humorless laugh. "Do none of us mean anything to you anymore? Kakashi? Naruto?" She hesitated, but still spoke. " _Me?_ "

"I told you back at Orochimaru's base all those months ago. My ties with you guys have been severed. Ever since I left the village." His voice was cold, emotionless, and almost robotic in a way. "What we have here," he gestured between the two of them, "is a mutually beneficial arrangement. It means nothing to me."

Sakura could hear the underlying meaning of his words.

 _You mean nothing to me._

She'd be lying if she said it didn't hurt. It hurt terribly, to hear further confirmation that he truly didn't care about any of them. That the bonds they'd shared meant nothing anymore—and she'd be damned if he ever tried to say they'd never had a special bond with one another at one point, because god _damnit_ they did.

Finishing up arranging her pack, she stood up, fastening it to her back, before throwing her cloak on overtop of her clothes. Finally looking him in the eye again, she lifted her hood. "Let's go already," she mumbled.

Meeting up with the rest of the group outside of the inn, the wasted no time in getting on the road, heading straight west.

Sasuke led the group with Karin trailing close behind. Sakura quickly learned that the woman was a sensor, and a good one. She couldn't help but thank her lucky stars for that stroke of luck; hopefully they'd find Kakashi sooner than later.

Suigetsu tagged along closer to her from where she straggled back a few feet behind Sasuke and Karin. She was impressed at his ability to carry the huge sword like it was nothing; not that he wasn't muscular, but he looked downright small next to Juugo.

She was sure she looked even tinier in comparison.

Juugo took up the rear, staying farther back behind them, but not too far. If she looked over her shoulder she could still see him keeping a steady pace several meters behind them.

They travelled nonstop for almost three hours; as they rounded the third hour she watched as Sasuke lifted a hand up, signaling for them to stop.

Landing on a tree branch beside Suigetsu, she glanced sideways at him, waiting to see if he'd approach or not. Instead, the man simply leaned against the tree leisurely, as if they _weren't_ heading straight into potential enemy territory.

Focusing back toward the two ahead of her, she watched as Karin spoke in a low voice, Sasuke staring out ahead of them. A minute later he lifted a hand and signaled for them to approach.

"What's up?" Suigetsu asked as they caught up. "Find anything worth mentioning."

"If I didn't then we wouldn't be calling your ass up here," Karin sneered, keeping her voice low.

"Stop it," Sasuke berated them, giving them both a harsh look. "There's a large chakra signature up ahead."

"I don't recognize it. It's strange." She furrowed her brow in concentration. "It's clearly only one signature, but it's very dense. Very powerful."

"A jinchuuriki?" Juugo asked, stepping forward with concern in his eyed.

She shrugged. "Doubt it. The only two left are the eight and nine tails. There's no way either of them are up ahead."

At the mention of Naruto, Sakura's chest tightened again, her thoughts immediately focusing on her constant concern for his wellbeing. She prayed that he was safe.

"It's headed our way," Sasuke added, eyes red and focused before them. "We're going to proceed, but slowly. Be on your guard."

With quiet movements, they continued onward. The silence of the forest was deafening to Sakura. These forests were nothing like the ones that surrounded Konoha. There were no birds chirping happily or wildlife grazing without a care. There was nothing but dark, damp foliage and unsettling, eerie silence.

Focusing on her surroundings, Sakura took her eyes off her path for a split-second, just long enough to run into Sasuke's back.

Biting back the apology that almost spilled forth out of habit, she instead scowled and glared up at the Uchiha crest stitched into his back. But before she could gather enough breath to ask him why the hell he'd stopped, he lifted an arm outward, as if telling them to stand back.

When she heard a low whistle, she watched as Suigetsu ignored Sasuke's nonverbal warning and instead stepped around him. "Well, that's new."

Peeking around him, Sakura first realized how the forest stopped abruptly just a few meters ahead of them. A small clearing lay before them and led up to a large stone structure built into the ground.

"That wasn't here when you left Oto… was it?" Karin asked from where she stood beside Sakura, eyes flashing from the building, to Sasuke, and back again.

Sasuke didn't answer, instead staring out ahead of him, studying the in-ground structure closely. Judging by his lack of reply and rigid stance, Sakura could only assume that the presence of this building had certainly caught him off guard.

And he did _not_ seem happy about it.

"Where is the chakra signature?" He asked lowly.

Karin blinked a few times before looking ahead of the group. "It's just inside the building."

"Juugo." With that one word, Sasuke jumped down out of the trees, the large man following after.

When Sakura moved to follow them, she was stopped abruptly. "Woah there," Suigetsu pulled her arm backward, keeping her up in the trees with them. "Wait," he instructed her, releasing her arm.

Biting the inside of her cheeks she pushed down her frustration. Why did they have to stay back? Why the hell couldn't she come along?

"Sasuke usually takes Juugo to scout out a place. Check it for enemies." Karin shrugged, answering her unspoken questions. "They don't usually find anyone we can't handle, but the fact that it's a big, unfamiliar chakra signature in an area familiar to him probably has him on edge."

Sakura only nodded absentmindedly, her eyes glued to Karin as she spoke. She knew it was none of her business and she _knew_ that it didn't matter, but it didn't stop her mind from wandering...

What was she to Sasuke? An image from her memory of Karin gently pushing his hair back from his face from when he laid on the ground, unconscious, several days before, flashed through her mind. She'd used a tenderness that people only carry for those they feel strongly for. Did she love him? Or was her devotion to Sasuke and this strange team that strong?

She doubted it was the latter; even from being with them a few days and witnessing them interacting firsthand, it was clear that Karin didn't care too much for Juugo, and seemed to actively _detest_ Suigetsu. But with Sasuke, it was different.

Ignoring the sour feeling in her stomach and the ache in her chest, Sakura ripped her eyes off the other girl and forced herself to look ahead of her.

She watched as Sasuke and Juugo approached the building. Sasuke's hand hovered over his katana, and Juugo followed closely behind, not leaving more than a foot in between the two. The two stopped abruptly, only a few meters away from a set of stairs that descended into the Earth and, presumably, into the building.

When a form slowly rose up, ascending the flight of stone stairs toward them, Sakura recognized the form immediately.

Jumping down from the trees, ignoring Suigetsu's calls for her to stop, she ran toward them.

"Sakura," Sasuke's voice was loud as she approached quickly, " _stop_." He wasn't facing her, but there was no doubt he'd heard Suigetsu and Karin shout after her.

Just meters from where they stood, Sakura skidded to a halt, kicking up dirt as she did so.

"Sakura Haruno?" The voice spoke, amusement and surprise evident in his tone. "My goodness, what are _you_ doing here?"

"Kabuto," Sasuke barked, how voice low, _angry._ "Do not ignore me."

The medic did not ignore him, but did wave a dismissive hand toward the last Uchiha. "Don't worry, Sasuke. I didn't forget about you. I'm just curious as to what the late Hokage's apprentice is doing all the way out here, travelling with rogue shinobi." Not once while he spoke did he take his eyes off of her.

Sakura was frozen as she looked at him. From farther away it was clear that it was Kabuto—his glasses and mop of dark grey hair were easy to see from far away. But the closer she got, the more confused she grew. And now, standing only meters away from him she couldn't help but openly gawk at him.

He looked _nothing_ like he had when she'd seen him the last time, when he'd stood at Orochimaru's side before they'd taken Sasuke away in a fiery illusion.

His eyes were yellowed, his skin looked paler and almost _translucent_ under the sunlight, and the purple markings around his eyes made him look scarily similar to Orochimaru.

"What are you doing here, Kabuto?" Sasuke asked through gritted teeth. Sakura watched as he opened and closed his hand behind him, as if he were _itching_ to grab his katana and do away with the man once and for all.

"I've been here this whole time. Did you think I'd leave after you killed Orochimaru-sama?" He clicked his tongue, as if scolding Sasuke like a young child. "I've been working on some things."

"Like turning yourself into Orochimaru?"

He chuckled. "Oh Sasuke, you're so naïve."

The sound of a sword slowly being unsheathed caused Sakura to rip her eyes off of Kabuto and watch as Sasuke held it at his side. She could only imagine that his sharingan were activated and that he was ready to attack.

She didn't know when Karin and Suigetsu had moved to follow after her, but she nearly jumped when she felt a hand grab the back of her shirt and pull slightly. Shooting a quick look over her shoulder she watched as Suigetsu stared at Kabuto and Sasuke with an apprehensive look, no doubt fearing the inevitable clash that would take place.

"Come on," he muttered quietly in her ear.

"Leaving so soon?" Kabuto asked, leaning his head to the side and studying Sakura once more. "I didn't get an answer to my question…"

"What do you want?" She asked as she found her voice. She swore she could hear Suigetsu let out an exasperated sound behind her as she stepped forward and away from his grasp.

"Why are you travelling with Sasuke?" He asked, genuine curiosity potent in his words.

"It's none of your business."

"Perhaps I should've asked a simpler question," he stepped to the side so that he wouldn't have to peer around Sasuke and could get a better look at her, "are you, or are you not, a rogue ninja?"

The term irked her severely. She knew that was technically what she was; after all, she _had_ abandoned her village with every intention of murdering the current Hokage. But there was no way she would _ever_ be able to verbally confirm herself as someone who would betray her village. No, she was doing this _for_ her village.

"So, Tsunade-sama's death changed you that dramatically? Such a shame. Although," he grinned wickedly at her, "I understand how that works." And the smirk his face fell into was undoubtedly Orochimaru's.

"I'm nothing like you," she spat, suddenly furious at the implied comparison between the two. "I'd never do the type of things that you have done."

"And yet," he held his arms out, "here you are. Travelling with murderers and traitors alike."

"Enough," Sasuke spoke loudly, directing Kabuto's attention away from Sakura and back toward him. She finally got a good look at his eyes in that moment and she gasped softly.

Those were not any normal sharingan.

The patterns were different than the usual threesome of tomoe that decorated the red of his eyes. Instead the patterns were larger, blacker, and more intimidating. It was almost flower-like and would've been beautiful if it weren't for the danger hidden within them.

"Ah, the mangekyou," Kabuto noted with pleasant surprise. "So I take it you _did_ finally kill Itachi? Good. That means less work for me."

Lifting his sword toward Kabuto, Sasuke glared, his expression absolutely deadly. "You'd shut your mouth if you knew what was good for you."

"Sasuke."

The sudden appearance of a cloaked figure standing on Sasuke's other side almost made Sakura jump; _almost_. Instead she turned toward the figure, lowering herself slightly and taking a defensive stance.

But Sasuke did not lower his sword, nor did he look toward the newcomer. The only indication that Sasuke had realized this presence was the way his frown deepened upon hearing the deep voice.

"Enough," the man spoke more firmly this time, even being so bold as to reach out and grab Sasuke's arm, lowering it himself. "You will not waste your time with this."

Sasuke ripped his arm out of the man's grasp and quickly sheathed his sword. He was angry, Sakura could see.

No, angry was an understatement. He was absolutely _livid_.

"He will not get in my way," Sasuke spoke coldly, resuming his control over his emotions.

"You're right, he won't," the man spoke in confirmation, seemingly pleased at the way Sasuke calmed down so quickly. "Kabuto is an ally."

"What?" Sasuke snapped, the anger returning all too quickly as his head snapped toward the man. That was when Sakura noticed it, the orange, spiral mask with a single eye hole. Short, dark hair spilled out over the very top and just barely peeked out from underneath the hood that was still up.

"He's right," Kabuto grinned at Sasuke, as if _elated_ by his reaction. "Allies. So make sure to calm down a little bit, Sasuke-kun."

"What the hell do we need him for?" He demanded, turning fully toward the masked man.

It was as Sasuke spoke when the man then turned his attention toward her. When Sakura saw the red of a sharingan flash behind his mask, she was frozen. _An Uchiha?_

"We'll discuss that later," he dismissed, his eye still trained on Sakura. "What do we have here?" Sakura felt so small under his gaze but she forced herself to stand up straight and stare back with her head up high. "Why is a Konoha ninja here?"

"She's on my team now," Sasuke spoke rigidly, seemingly displeased with the way he was staring at her, "she's helping me take down Konoha's council."

"A defector, eh?" He chuckled darkly. "Hard to believe Tsunade's disciple would turn on her village so quickly."

"Danzo killed my master," she defended tersely. "He murdered Konoha's Hokage and is harming my village. I want him gone."

"Oh I'm sure he did," the man spoke without a hint of doubt. Eye flashing to Sasuke and then back to Sakura, he half-shrugged. "Go ahead, help Sasuke kill him if you want. But don't be so simple as to assume things will return to normal when you're done," he spoke cryptically. "Now," he turned back toward Sasuke and began to walk down the stairs which Kabuto had just emerged from, "follow me."

Sakura watched with a fast-beating heart as the masked man and Kabuto slowly descended the stairs, eventually disappearing into darkness the deeper they got.

"Do we follow?" Juugo asked, seemingly sensing Sasuke unease.

Sasuke said nothing, but after a few long moments he began to walk, fists clenched at his sides as he walked down the stairs.

"Fuck," Sakura heard Karin mutter under her breath as they began to follow him. "I hate Kabuto. He gives me the fucking creeps."

"You're tellin' me." Suigetsu visibly shivered, frowning deeply, a tooth sticking out of his lip.

It was the first time Sakura had seen them agree on anything, and she understood fully.

And as they descended into darkness she found herself subconsciously sticking closely to Sasuke pack of misfits. She wasn't in Konoha anymore. This was uncharted territory. And she knew that if she was going to get rid of Danzo, she'd have to roll with the punches.

Whether she wanted to associate with Kabuto or not.

The base was not as damp and lightless as Sakura remembered Orochimaru's hideout being several months before, but it still carried a haunting aura in every hallway and room. She felt a sense of camaraderie overcome her as she took note of Karin's tenseness. Sitting beside her on a couch on one end of the long, dusty room they were in, she was relieved when the woman didn't protest to their proximity.

Sakura wasn't necessary looking for a friend, but just for someone to validate her uneasiness.

On the other end of the room, shrouded in shadows, were Sasuke and the masked man speaking lowly to one another.

Even from where she stood, and even despite the fact that his features were almost indistinguishable from this distance, Sakura could just _feel_ his fury from the other end of the room.

Leaning on the wall across from them, arms crossed and frowning deeply, Suigetsu frowned. "I didn't sign up for this shit," he mumbled with frustration. "Not a fan of these Orochimaru copy-cats and back-from-the-dead Uchihas. Nope, not one bit."

Sakura ears perked up at that. "Back from the dead?"

Suigetsu blinked toward her. "Madara?" He threw a thumb over his shoulder, gesturing toward the masked man at the other end of the room. "You know, Madara Uchiha?"

"That is not Madara Uchiha," she stated bluntly, hardly believing her ears, "he died years ago. _Years_ before we were born." She shook her head stubbornly. "There's no way. Madara Uchiha is dead."

"That is what many people think," a deep voice spoke, suddenly very close, "because no one knows the truth."

Beside her, Karin jumped slightly, her glasses falling from her face momentarily. Sakura attempted to swallow the thickness in her throat and stared up at him, biting the inside of her cheek and hoping that she didn't look as startled as she truly was.

"Madara Uchiha died," she repeated, still disbelieving. "There's no way."

"I cannot force you to believe me, and I will not waste my time trying," he spoke impatiently, seeming perturbed at her denial, "but whether you doubt me or not, it is true."

Standing behind him, Sasuke stood, staring at the back of his head, glaring. Only thing time, his sharingan was deactivated and he stared with nothing more than the blacks of his eyes.

"I hear you are seeking out the Copy Cat ninja," he spoke indifferently, crossing his arms over his chest. "What would that do to help?"

At the casual mention of her sensei by this man who should, by all means, be her enemy, Sakura felt her chest ache. She wanted to shoot Sasuke a glare, but she knew that there was no way Sasuke _wouldn't_ mention their plans to this man. This supposed Madara Uchiha that he seemed to be allied with.

"If he can help us to get into the village undetected, disposing of the council will be that much simpler." Sasuke said with impatience, slowly walking around Madara so that he could see everyone.

"I know that, Sasuke," he spoke with annoyance, as if chastising a small child, "I just wanted to her what our loyal Konoha kunoichi over here had to say about it."

Eyes shifting from Madara, to Sasuke, and back to Madara, Sakura could feel the tenseness that erupted every time the two spoke, and she couldn't help but wonder how Sasuke came into contact with the seemingly-undead Madara Uchiha.

Staring at his lone sharingan eye, Sakura felt herself struggling against the sudden feeling of vertigo. She placed her hands on either side of her to steady the spinning in her head and managed to glare at the man.

"Why a genjutsu?" She demanded quickly, irritated and slightly unsettled with the strange turn of events.

"My, my," he spoke with interest, "you are good, aren't you?"

Sakura merely glared, "I could break out of this in two seconds if I wanted to. What do you want?"

"I just wanted to be clear with some things."

Suddenly, they weren't in the long, dark room in Kabuto's underground base. In a flash the world around them changed and they were somewhere dark and wet. The only illumination was from the red moon above, casting an eerie glow on the water below them.

"If you're expecting to kill your Hokage and not suffer casualties, then you are terribly foolish." As he started to slowly circle her, she held her eyes forward and kept her shoulders and stance firm. "Your friends will try to stop you. Are you prepared to kill your friends?"

"You're crazy."

"And you are nothing but a silly girl with the impression that killing a Hokage is going to be easy." He stopped walking once he was behind her. "Even if you don't have to kill your friends, what makes you think _he_ won't? Do not disabuse yourself of the notion that he won't kill whoever he has to in order to uphold his rule." He stepped closer until he was directly behind her; she knew that if he didn't have the mask on his face his breath would be tickling the back of her neck. "And since he is Hokage and your friends are loyal, what makes you think they won't try and kill you?"

"What do you want from me?" She snapped, spinning on her heel and glowering at him. "I _know_ all this! Why are you telling me?"

"Disposing of the council will not magically fix the corrupt nature of this village. I'm sure Sasuke told you all about what they did to his family?" When she didn't respond, he reached forward and placed both of his hands on her shoulders. His grip felt dirty, disgusting, and Sakura wanted to rip his arms off more than anything in that moment. "They wouldn't hesitate to do the same to your family. What would you do then?"

And in a flash, she was back. Gripping the couch underneath her tightly, she immediately dropped his gaze, her body almost crumbling under the dizziness threatening to overtake her.

"Madara." Sasuke's loud voice broke through her dizziness as she lifted her head weakly, looking towards him. "Stop that." It was evident that he knew Madara had just put her under a genjutsu. Sakura found herself wondering if he was mad out of concern for her or if he was irritated that he didn't hear what was said.

She doubted it was the former.

"Just checking something," he spoke with amusement, seemingly pleased with their short conversation that had taken place inside of her head. "Anyways, you'll find Kakashi Hatake in the Village Hidden in the Rain. Where most of Konoha's jonin have been sent recently. Feel free to travel there," he spoke as he turned toward the door and began to make an exit, "but please try not to die Sasuke. That would be disappointing."

Struggling against the dizziness, Sakura forced her eyes to follow as the man left the room. When she felt a hand press against her back she turned and attempted to give Karin a thankful look, but she was sure it looked pained.

"Pull yourself together," her eyes wandered to meet Sasuke's, "we're leaving again soon."

And with that comment, Sasuke also left the room, Juugo following close behind. Spewing a few more frustrated comments laced with vulgarities, Suigetsu followed the pair a minute later, leaving the two kunoichi behind.

After a minute passed and Karin still remained by her side, a tentative hand still resting on her back, Sakura was surprised. Not that she didn't appreciate the support, but it confused her. They didn't have any mutual trust in one another; well, as far as she was aware.

"Sorry," Sakura rasped out, closing her eyes and sending small waves of chakra through her nervous system, "I'll be alright in a few minutes."

"Don't worry. Take your time. The more time we spend away from these creeps the better."

Sakura couldn't help but crack a smile at that. Despite the fact that the dizziness was slowly subsiding, she couldn't help herself when she spoke next.

"Can I ask you something?" She asked, eyes still closed and arms still braced against the couch by her sides. She knew she shouldn't ask. She knew she had no place knowing. And she knew it was none of her business. But the delirium that was subsiding was still heavy enough to influence her next words.

"What?"

"I… know I may be off-base here, and I'm sorry if this is an inappropriate question," she paused for a moment and took in a steady breath, "but are you and Sasuke-kun… like… involved?"

After a few seconds of silence, she opened her eyes and peered toward the red-headed woman. Karin was openly gaping at Sakura, a blush dusting her cheeks as she seemed to search for words to reply with. But eventually she found her voice.

"I—I mean—you mean like together? Like an item?" Sakura nodded, keeping her expression neutral. If she was showing any emotion it was likely just genuine curiosity. Karin scoffed, pushing her glasses higher up her nose, "What? What would give you that idea? I mean—we're just teammates. We're just working together on all this. Nothing more, just—we're just friends. Well, no, not friends. Sasuke-kun doesn't do 'friends', but we're… we're…"

The woman's face was burned a deep red and for a moment Sakura felt a pang in her chest. Not out of jealousy or irritation, but because she knew exactly what the redhead was feeling. "It's okay," she eventually spoke, putting a stop to her rambling, "I know what you mean." She wouldn't deny that she felt just a little bit of relief though, knowing that there really wasn't anything requited going on between her and Sasuke.

A stupid, silly thought, she knew it. But it wasn't as if she could control the way she felt for him, even after all that had happened.

Karin then cleared her throat. "What—how do _you_ know Sasuke-kun? Konoha?"

Sakura sighed, stretching an arm and cracking her neck. "We were teammates back in the day." Some days it felt like a lifetime to her, but in reality it hadn't even been three years. "The man we're going to find, Hatake Kakashi, he was our genin sensei," she paused, "I'm surprised Sasuke-kun is even going along with this plan. They haven't seen each other since he left."

"So you know him pretty well, huh?" Karin asked, her uneasiness hidden underneath her curiosity, but not hidden well enough.

"Let's go," a voice snapped them out of their quiet conversation, "we're leaving." Standing back in the doorway was Sasuke, his sharingan glowing through the dimness of the room. He studied them both for a split second with narrowed eyes before turning on his heel and marching away.

Sakura shot Karin a tired look. "No," she eventually answered, her voice just above a whisper, "not anymore."


	6. Chapter 6

They'd travelled for over two straight days before stopping for the first time. Refraining from travelling through Fire Country was the first decision that was made as they began their journey. Sasuke had already been in Konoha's bingo book for a while now, but with Sakura newly defected the amount of people that could be potentially searching for them had certainly risen exponentially.

When they eventually reached the outskirts of the Hidden Waterfall, they'd been travelling straight west, trying to cover as much ground as possible. Sakura was thankful when Sasuke eventually slowed to a stop and when she saw the small village ahead of her she could've wept tears of joy. Of course she kept all comments to herself and instead quietly followed after him.

"One night, then we're back on the road until we get to Ame," Sasuke spoke as they entered the room they'd be staying in, tossing weapons and bags to the ground. He eyed Sakura with a cold look as she placed down her bag. Sakura stared back questioningly, waiting for him to say something. When he remained silent, turned, and strode out of the room, to say that she was left a little irritated would be an understatement.

"Did I do something?" She asked out loud to the room, annoyance evident as she lifted her arms in exasperation.

Suigetsu laughed, unrolling a mat. "That's how Sasuke _always_ is," he stated, as if she were dumb to think he'd act any other way, "always a drama queen. Thought you knew this."

Sakura almost cracked a small smile at the jab at Sasuke's attitude. "I'm just sick of these dirty looks he's been giving me." She toed off her sandals before picking up her bag once more. "I'm going to shower." And without another word she left the room.

She'd stripped out of her clothes the moment the door closed behind her and within minutes she was standing underneath the hot spray of the shower, letting the heat of the water soothe her sore muscles. It had been far too long since she'd properly showered and finally letting the dirt, sweat, and grime wash off her body felt incredible.

Indulging in the warmth and comfort of the shower, Sakura didn't step back out until almost a half an hour later, taking her time to scrub just about every inch of her body, completely fresh and cleaned by the time she was done. She was half-way dressed, head tilted forward as she towel-dried her hair when something caught her eye.

A slip of yellowed paper, folded in half lay just peeking out of the top of her shirt. Face scrunched up in confusion she leaned down to pick it up, unfolding it as she did so. It was the moment she saw the neat, dark characters hurriedly drawn on the paper when she gasped.

Suddenly, the memory of Sai holding her in his grip and slipping the paper into her shirt flashed through her mind. Towel and dirty clothes left forgotten on the floor, Sakura turned and dashed out of the bathroom, nearly running directly into Sasuke.

"Sakura, what—" he had to grab her by her upper arms and step to the side to avoid being collided into. Caught off guard by his appearance she nearly tripped over his feet as he caught her. Letting out a squeak she gripped his forearm with her free hand, her wet hair flying around her as she allowed him to hold her up. "What happened? What's wrong?" And within seconds his sharingan was activated.

The only thing Sakura could think to do was lift the paper and hold it in front of his face for him to see.

Frowning at her thrusting it into his sight, he lifted her upright slightly and released her with one arm. Grabbing it from her, he studied it closely. His frown deepened. "What is this?"

"It's from Sai," she breathed out quickly, her adrenaline rising, "he slipped it in my shirt when I ran into him and I—I don't know how but I must've forgotten about it. It's a code or riddle of some sort. It's _important_ , I know it is." She was absolutely ecstatic with her finding that she was smiling so wide her cheeks were beginning to hurt. "He really is helping us."

When she heard someone let out a low whistle she turned to Suigetsu, giving him a confused look.

"So uh, should we leave to give you two privacy or…?"

Immediately confused at his suggestion it took her about a minute to realize that she was only wearing her underwear and chest bindings. She would've been immediately embarrassed if it weren't for the fact that she was so elated at her finding; she didn't even _care_ that she was half naked in a room full of people.

Although it was when Sasuke released his hold on her that she realized just exactly how _close_ he'd been holding her.

As she realized that she'd been practically pressed against him with very little on… _that_ was when the embarrassment started to kick in.

"I'll be right back," she mumbled quickly, still being driven by adrenaline but coming to her senses enough to realize that dressing herself was probably her personal priority at this point. She attempted to tune out Suigetsu's laughter as she closed the door behind her.

Leaning against the door she cursed her obliviousness. Unwillingly her mind wandered to how it had felt to have his arms pressed against her bare skin and how long he'd held her against him, even though he'd already steadied her on her own two feet.

Placing her hands over her face she stifled a frustrated groan. Shaking the thoughts from her head she quickly dressed herself, refusing to think further about the situation. Her complicated feelings for him would have to wait; there were more important things to attend to.

Exiting the room she energetically strode back up to Sasuke, pushing her embarrassing thoughts aside as she peered down at the note he was still studying.

"I still don't understand what it is," Suigetsu said, scratching the side of his head as he peered at it once more before sitting back on his mat.

"It looks like an excerpt of a map almost," Juugo said, "but I don't know what this is supposed to mean."

"Here, let me see," when Sasuke handed it back over to her she studied the paper again.

Indeed it did look like half of it was an excerpt of a random map, but without any knowing what the map was of or where it was showing them, it was all but pointless. Next to it was a series of symbols that made very little sense.

 _Think_ , she commanded herself, staring at the paper closely, _think_.

"He's your friend, right?" Karin shrugged, "Maybe it's something that'll only makes sense to you," she offered as mild encouragement. Sakura knew she was right, but finding out _how_ to decipher it was the hardest part.

After a few minutes she sighed, handing the paper back over to Sasuke. "I don't know, I can't think of anything."

"Look at it again in the morning," he muttered, glancing over the paper again before folding it up and handing it back over to her, "maybe you can figure it out after some rest."

She nodded, taking the message wordlessly, slipping it into the front of her top to keep it safe. She couldn't keep her eyes off Sasuke though. Something about his demeanor seemed… _off_. He wasn't irritable with her inability to decode the message, or outwardly irritated by her collision with him, he just appeared very quiet in an unusual way; morose almost.

It was a far cry from his seemingly angry attitude he was displaying only hours ago.

When he wordlessly turned and left the room, she had to resist the habitual urge to follow him; something she'd done so often when they were younger. Instead, she reminded herself that they weren't children anymore and that if she wanted his help with this crazy plan of hers, she needed him to remain _un_ -irritated by her as often as possible.

So instead, she readied herself for sleep, reminding herself that she needed as much rest as possible. Living life as a rogue ninja put her constantly on edge, especially knowing that she was being actively hunted most likely. She could never be sure whether or not any night's sleep would be her last.

With those thoughts she fell into a fitful, restless sleep.

* * *

When Sakura woke up, sitting up fast and grabbing a kunai from under her pillow, she turned toward the noise and stared with wide eyes into the dark. It wasn't until she saw Sasuke kneeling a few steps from her, looking at her with a raised eyebrow and a look of annoyance, when she finally lowered her weapon and let out a breath of air.

"You scared me," she whispered, her voice hardly loud enough for him to hear.

Rolling his eyes, he continued rifling through his pack. Sakura watched closely but when she saw him retrieve nothing and sit back on his mat, she raised an eyebrow of her own.

"What time is it?" She asked, leaning back slightly as she stared over toward the dark window. She'd fallen asleep a little before midnight and seemingly hadn't slept long if the sun didn't seem to be rising any time soon.

"Late," he spoke softly, still sitting upright on his mat, facing her with arms crossed.

Sakura almost laughed at his reply; it was such a _Sasuke_ answer. "Seriously," she spoke, a hint of humor in her voice.

"Three. Now go back to sleep."

Laying her head back down on her pillow she continued to stare at him. He'd yet to move from his position to lay down or to stand up and leave, he simply sat there, looking at her.

"Where the hell have you been for the past three hours?" She spoke, trying to hide her curiosity underneath feigned annoyance. "Not sitting there watching me sleep, I hope."

"Go to sleep, Sakura."

She couldn't help but grin at him, getting a kick out of seeing him slightly exasperated with her. It made her feel warm, the familiarity of it all. And as he looked at her with mild annoyance and contentment it only caused the warmth in her chest to intensify. When he looked at her with irritation and anger, it was like she was looking at a completely different person.

But this, sitting right here before her, was undoubtedly her Sasuke-kun.

"Are you going to sleep?" She asked lazily, wrapping her blanket tighter around her. "You only have a few hours before we're on the road. And there's no telling what will happen when we get there."

"Don't speak to me like a child," he grumbled, his voice still quiet. "I know what we're getting into."

"I just want you to have energy," she spoke calmly back, "I don't want you getting hurt again."

"Tch." He turned away from her at that comment, absentmindedly rubbing his neck. Right on the very spot a kunai had torn through not long ago. "I don't want or need anyone looking after me," he snapped, his voice turning ice cold. "I don't need you."

She knew his words were chosen carefully, meant to hurt her, but no such thing happened. Instead she smiled sadly at him. "Whatever, Sasuke-kun. Just keep telling yourself that."

Closing her eyes she made a move to turn and face the other side, but before she could her eyes widened at the feeling of a hand gripping her shoulder, pulling her back.

"Don't," he spoke heavily, suddenly very close to her. She hadn't even heard him move from his spot. She merely stared back up at him in surprise. "Don't you dare patronize me."

Sitting up a little straighter so she could look him in the eye better, she glared back, the frustration growing when he didn't remove his hand from her arm. If he was expecting her to back down or flinch back from fear, then he'd be sorely disappointed.

He wasn't the only one that had changed over the years.

"If it weren't for me you'd be dead right now," she spoke slowly. "Don't act like you can patch your own veins and arteries back together by yourself."

"You need to watch what you say," he growled so low she almost struggled to hear, "or you won't see your village again."

Her glare intensified, the warmth in her chest now transformed into an intense fire. "Is that a threat?" Fists clenched at her sides she leaned forward, chin lifted defiantly. She was not going to back down or break under any idle threats he would send her way.

For a split-second she could see the surprise in his eyes at her defiance, but it was gone just as it registered.

Leaning forward toward her, so close their noses were touching, he held his glare steady and she continued to hold his gaze. Sakura could feel his breath fanning against her face and she held back a shiver that almost involuntarily shook her body.

An emotion Sakura couldn't identify quickly enough flashed through his eyes and promptly disappeared the moment their lips met.

It was all passion. The intensity of it all so incredibly overwhelming. The way her fingers wove their way through his hair. The way his own fingers wrapped around her neck and waist, pulling her closer to him. The kiss was messy, teeth clacking and lips being bit, their inexperience on both sides painfully evident.

The fire in her chest did not extinguish, but instead of being fueled by frustration, a new feeling took over to fan the flames. A feeling that she could only describe as pure, primal _want_. Pushing her feelings for him deep down all that suddenly mattered was how she felt right now, her lips against his.

What she wouldn't do in that moment to have her body fully pressed against his.

After about a minute he pulled back slightly, the grip on the back of her neck tightening. He resumed his glare. "It's not a threat," he growled, leaning forward, his breath tickling against her neck. She couldn't stop the gasp that slipped through her lips. "It's a guarantee."

Fury ignited once more, she crashed her lips against his again, refusing to relinquish her grip on him. A part of her wanted more. Another part of her wanted him to take back the threat; she wanted to make him eat his words.

Her boldness seemed to catch him off guard as it took him several seconds to return the kiss. But when he did, he responded just as eagerly. When his grip on her neck loosened and his arms both found their way around her waist, she shivered.

"What—" she gasped, desperately clinging to the shred of coherence she'd garnered, "what are you doing?" As she spoke, he nipped at her neck, licking and nibbling at the exposed flesh. "What are we doing?"

"Shut up," he growled, less than pleased over the fact that she was determined to figure out what was happening. Sasuke seemed more than eager to continue whatever it was they were doing, without much thought.

Instead of deterring her, his words only caused her clarity to begin to return to her.

"Sasuke," she bit back a groan as he sucked against her throat, "what—"

"This doesn't mean anything," he finally grumbled, a bit breathless against her neck. And as he spoke the words, he seemed to return to himself, pulling away and sitting up.

Sakura memorized the way he looked in that moment. Disheveled, panting, eyes glossy. And when he repeated his words again, standing up abruptly, turning, and quietly strolling toward the door, she knew one thing was certain.

"Liar."

And that was that Uchiha Sasuke was lying to her.

It took her a few minutes to completely pull herself back together, and when she did she found herself completely frozen where she sat. For a long moment the only movement she made was lifting her fingertips to rest against her slightly-swollen lips.

She could hardly comprehend what had happened, let alone _why_ he had done such a thing.

He'd grabbed her, kissed her, and he'd kissed her _hard_. In no world would she ever think that Sasuke would do such a thing: to kiss her out of the blue, in the middle of a stand-off nonetheless.

Was it done merely to get his point across in a way that he _knew_ she couldn't resist submitting to? Or was it more than that? Did this mean he _did_ care for her? Or that at least he found himself subconsciously attracted to her?

" _This doesn't mean anything._ " Again, the words rang through her head, but they were an absolute lie. And Sakura knew it.

Slowly settling back on her mat, she found herself staring at his own empty mat. Her last thoughts before she fell asleep once more were focused solely on him.

 _What on Earth are you thinking, Sasuke-kun?_

* * *

She was awoken abruptly the following morning by something heavy hitting her back. Sitting up and watching as her backpack shifted off of her, she only managed to shoot Suigetsu a weak glare from where he stood above her, smirking.

"Rise and shine, Pinky." As if to get her up quicker he tapped her hip with his foot a couple times.

Swatting at him, she strengthened her glare and threw her backpack off of her mat. "Do you want to lose that foot?" She grumbled at him, her voice scratchy with sleep.

He merely laughed lowly, "I'd love to see you try."

Standing up and allowing her joints to pop back into place she spared him a half-smile, feeling oddly playful. "Oh, you have no idea what I can do," she spoke confidently. "Don't underestimate me."

He scoffed, turning around and gathering his bag and sword from where they lay. "Please, what have you ever defeated," he peered over his shoulder and eyed her up and down, sizing her up, "except maybe a side-salad."

"How about Sasori of the Red Sand?" She offered, placing a hand on her hip, pulling her shoulders back and lifting her head up.

He merely laughed again, and the sound irked her. "Please, Pinky. You didn't kill an Akatsuki."

Without hesitating she reached for the hem of her shirt and pulled it upward, exposing her abdomen and the scar that still marred her skin. It was jagged, the effects of the poison had made it just about impossible to remove the mark from her skin, but she didn't mind it so much anymore. To her, it was evidence that she could do anything and take on any opponent.

It was a thought that helped keep her going during this mission.

At first, his eyes widened in surprise. He certainly hadn't been expecting to her to flash him some skin, but nevertheless he studied the mark with doubtful eyes. "There's no way," he shook his head, turning back toward his gear with a half-smile on his face, "nah, nope. Nice try though, you almost had me convinced."

Immediately she was indignant, teeth grinding together as she scowled at his back.

"She's not lying," Sasuke suddenly chimed in from where he stood across the room, already prepared for their departure. His eyes met hers for a brief moment before he turned his gaze back toward Suigetsu. Against her will her heart began to speed up, thoughts of their kiss from the night before immediately flooding her mind.

His gaze was indifferent though, even a little bored if she did say so herself.

Now, Suigetsu's eyes widened in surprise, looking from Sasuke and back to Sakura as he finished gathering his things. Eventually he let out a short laugh. "Well, I'll be damned," he grinned, as he approached her, "We _definitely_ have to fight one of these days." His grin was sly, sharp teeth exposed, and there was a wicked glint in his eye, indicative of mischief. Sakura couldn't help but smirk back, still irritated that he'd doubted her, but content that he now believed her.

They left shortly after that, heading directly South, hoping to make it to the Hidden Rain within the next day and a half. At the rate they were going though, Sakura was sure that they'd likely make it sometime that very night.

Late in the afternoon they were forced to stop, Suigetsu insisting that he needed to take a break. Karin had thrown her hands up in exasperation, shooting off nearly-endless comments about his uselessness while he sat down and began sipping some water, doing well to ignore her to his best ability.

Her eyes flicked towards Sasuke only to find him staring at his two teammates with an annoyed expression, his arms crossed over his chest. She felt her eyes lingering for too long on his lips and when she began to feel heat growing in her belly, she quickly averted her eyes.

Seeking any distraction, she turned and pulled the note from Sai out of her shirt, studying it again for the nth time since she'd rediscovered it. Running her fingers down it, she tried once more to make sense of it.

It was something only she'd be able to figure out, Karin had speculated, and Sakura knew that she was right. But knowing that didn't change the fact that she kept finding herself entirely unable to solve even a single piece of this puzzle.

 _Think,_ she commanded herself, _think_.

Her thoughts only lead her to her friends, and again she found herself hoping and praying that they were all okay, every single one of them. Most of all Hinata, Sai, and Naruto.

Of course Sai would've been able to restrain her after seconds of approaching her. Only he and Naruto knew her exact style of fighting, so only they'd be able to know her weaknesses in her defense before even looking at her. But when she'd heard his voice she'd almost found herself overwhelmed by a mixture of relief and worry.

But his instructions and his aide in helping her get away reconfirmed to her what she already knew: Danzo knew that she _knew_ , and Sai knew that Danzo was a murderer.

" _Whatever you do, don't stop_ ," he'd told her in a low, rushed voice, his breath tickling her ear as he held her closely against him. Lifting a hand, she subconsciously itched her ear. His instructions to avoid the ANBU had been simple and effective, to an extent.

The image of Sasuke's form falling to the ground, a trail of blood flowing down his neck flashed before her eyes and she winced outwardly. But nevertheless, Sai had most likely saved her life that day. It wasn't until she recalled his last instruction when she halted every other thought floating through her crowded mind.

" _And remember: look to the Sun."_

Looking with wide eyes at the paper, she repeated the statement a few times. Slowly, she raised the paper up in the air toward the Sun. She hardly noticed when Sasuke had approached her, standing beside her and looking at her strangely.

For a moment, she felt silly, staring at this paper she held to the sunlight, as if waiting for some magic to happen.

It wasn't until something _did_ happen when she realized she wasn't as crazy as she thought she was.

Slowly words began to appear on the paper, in translucent ink that lightened the paper where the words were printed.

"Invisible ink," she'd gasped with a smile. In that moment she was so thankful for Sai that she felt like crying tears of joy. At the sound of her pleased laughter, the sound of bickering behind her stopped abruptly. " _Look_!" Arms still lifted, she turned the paper toward him to show him.

Sharingan activated, he took the paper from her hands quickly, holding it up in front of his own eyes, lifting it so the sun still shown through it.

"The message," she heard Juugo speak from above her. She looked up to see the quiet man leaning over her, his wide eyes on the note.

"There's a list on it," she smiled, happy tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes, "of where our special Jonin are."

"'Northeast entry. Thirty days after the solstice. Before sunset.'" Sasuke read out loud before pausing. "There is no northeast entrance to the village."

Sakura stared into the forest, thinking deeply. Looking up at him she couldn't help when she grabbed his forearm, squeezing firmly. "Yes, there is." When he eventually looked to her, she continued. "Remember? Our fifth year, history class. The landslide that happened before Shodai's death." When something flickered in his eyes, her smile widened; she knew he remembered. "It killed over two-hundred citizens. They closed it down immediately afterward."

"They had to," he eventually spoke, his mind retrieving what vague memory he had of the lesson from years before, "it caved in. It was inaccessible."

"Not according to Sai."

"And if it's a trap?" Karin proposed, still doubtful.

"No way. If Sai wanted to betray me he would've done it when he grabbed me to give me this. There's no way he would've risked so much to bring me information." She wasn't about to tell them that she trusted him with her life. She had a strong feeling that trust like that meant very little to them.

"Madara was right," Karin spoke again, "Hatake Kakashi is in the Hidden Rain."

Sakura immediately turned around, eyes finding Suigetsu. "Are you good now?"

He took one last long sip of his water before making an over-exaggerated satisfied noise. "Ah, I guess."

"Let's go then." It wasn't until she bent down to retrieve her bag when she remembered she was still holding Sasuke's arm tightly. Releasing it swiftly she stood up straight, flinging her bag onto her back and giving him a slightly-apologetic look. "Sorry," she smiled as she spoke, but immediately turned her head, looking away when she found his eyes lingering on her.

They wordlessly departed, travelling non-stop and faster than they had prior to their pit-stop. Knowing that at this rate they'd cross the border to the Hidden Rain before nightfall made her chest ignite with excitement.

The only off-putting fact was knowing that when Kakashi saw her travelling with Sasuke and his group, he would immediately know that she'd gone rogue. She was dreading the look of disappointment that she knew she'd see in his face.

But that was the least of her worries. She knew Kakashi wouldn't turn her in, but she _didn't_ know if he'd be willing to help her. After all, she was asking for him to help commit treason, and Kakashi had always been a dedicated shinobi.

But, in her defense, so had she. And she _knew_ this was the right decision. So onward they travelled, her determination holding strong and the fire in her chest burning brightly, driving her forward.


	7. Chapter 7

They didn't call it the Hidden Rain for nothing.

Before they'd even gotten to the village, they'd been faced with heavy, relentless rain pelting their backs and soaking their clothes. It was miserable, and their cloaks did very little to protect their bodies from the cold once they were wet.

The sun had set a few hours ago, taking the warmth of the summer with it. They'd been quietly wandering around the village ever since, being careful so that they'd go undetected. This is when Sakura truly began to feel like a rogue. Hiding in the shadows, travelling silently, leaving no trace behind. It made the experience feel so surreal, and it made her anxiety fly through the roof.

"Someone is watching us," Karin whispered to them soon after they started walking through the streets, "I can sense them circling us every now and then, but they're only observing us. It's a pretty big signature."

"Keep an eye on it," Sasuke instructed as they walked amongst the shadows. "If it starts getting closer, let us know. Until then, everyone else disregard it."

Drawing her cloak tighter around her, as if seeking it's warmth despite the fact that it was soaked, Sakura shuffled closer to Karin. "Any sign of any larger signatures yet?"

The woman shook her head. "Not besides the one watching us. But I'm still—" She paused, turning around and stopping abruptly.

"What?" Sakura asked, alarmed by her sudden change in body language.

"There a new chakra signature. A big one," she spoke a little louder so the rest of their team could hear. "It's… not approaching, but it knows we're here."

"It could be Kakashi," Sakura's eyes widened as she looked in the direction that Karin was staring. "We should go look—"

"No." Sasuke's voice was stern. "Karin, can you keep an eye on both?" When she nodded, he turned back around and began walking again. "We are going to wait."

Before Sakura could speak up, everyone was already walking away. The urge to simply run to see if it was truly Kakashi was overwhelming, but she couldn't risk it in case it was an enemy, or someone from Konoha. She also could jeopardize whatever arrangement she had currently with Sasuke. And if she had to follow his increasingly frustrating orders, she supposed she had to deal with them for as long as it took to dispose of Danzo.

"It's coming this way," Karin blurted out, several minutes later, "the second signature I sensed. It's on the way here and it's moving fast."

"Get ready," Sasuke spoke lowly, and when Sakura turned to face him, he was out of sight completely. Watching as Juugo slinked into the shadows and Suigetsu leaned against a building, both hands clasped tightly around his sword, she figured she needed to brace herself, too.

Bringing chakra into her fists, she mimicked Suigetsu's stance on the opposite side of the dark street. Karin kept close to her side, and for that she was thankful.

"Where is it?" Sakura spoke quietly, eyes flickering across the street, up to the rooftops, and to each intersection and street corner she could see.

"I—" Karin looked nervous, "It just disappeared. I don't know—"

Sasuke was in front of them before Karin could finish her sentence, sword drawn and cloak fluttering behind him. "Get down, _now_."

Karin immediately listened, backing away quickly until she was hidden in the shadows back toward where Juugo had disappeared, but Sakura wasn't about to back away from a fight. So as Sasuke deflected a couple of kunai and shot up toward the rooftops, Sakura jumped right after him.

The rain wasn't helping her in terms of visibility, but she could see clearly enough ahead of her that she wasn't in any danger of tripping or running into anything.

Thinking that Sasuke would just disregard her presence as she followed him, she let out a surprised squeak when he was at her side, his hand gripping her upper arm tightly.

"Did you not hear me?" He snapped, his voice low. "Get back, _now_."

"And stay out of this fight?" Sakura tried pulling her arm out of his grip but he simply tightened his hold. "No, I'm coming with you."

"I'm in charge here," he growled, losing his patience, "so you have to listen to me."

"Not a chance," she spat back, yanking once more and freeing herself from his grip.

Before Sasuke could spit back another retort, he was jumping backward in order to avoid a flurry of shuriken being tossed his way. Shifting to her side she turned her attention toward where the weapons had come from, lowering her body and taking a defensive stance. But when she felt a gust of wind behind her, she knew that the shuriken had been nothing more than a distraction.

Tumbling out of the way, she flew forward, rolling until she was back on her feet before jumping to another rooftop. She had just barely heard the sound of a kunai slicing through the air behind where she'd stood. Too close of a call for her liking.

And Sasuke was there again, red eyes glowing in the night. For a split second she thought he was charging at her, but when he wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her against him while simultaneously lifting his sword with his opposite arm, she gasped.

The sound of metal striking metal almost caused her to jump. Sasuke had his other arm extended, using his sword to keep the kunai from striking him. Sakura couldn't help but feel entirely helpless, being trapped in between this exchange of blows, but for some reason she was unafraid.

Despite not trusting Sasuke fully, somehow she felt safe with him in that moment.

"Let her go," a voice boomed loudly above the rain, "Sasuke."

Sakura let out a choked sound as she struggled to turn around in Sasuke's grip, "Kakashi-sensei," the sound fell out of her mouth like a prayer and she fought back a sob, instead the sound emerging like a desperate coughing fit. As she struggled to turn and look directly at her teacher, Sasuke tightened his hold around her, keeping her pressed into his chest.

"Sasuke, let her go or I will kill you."

"Kakashi, no—wait, it's not what you think. Sasuke—damnit, let me go!"

Sasuke didn't release her but he did loosen his hold on her only slightly, just enough for her to turn around and gaze at her sensei.

Kakashi widened his one eye in pure shock at the sight of Sasuke obliging her request, "Sakura, what's going on? Are you hurt?"

"No, no. I'm alright I swear. He's not holding me captive or anything, I promise." Although she was sure their current situation made it look like that was exactly what was going on. "Sasuke," she wiggled further, "seriously—let me _go_!"

"Wait," he said sternly, "not until I have his word."

"Tell me what is going on," Kakashi demanded of Sasuke, before turning his gaze down to Sakura, "Sakura, explain."

"We need your help," she spoke quickly. "I— _I_ need your help. Please sensei, please. If you don't, they're going to kill me. Danzo," she gasped, "Danzo is going to kill me."

"I need your word, Kakashi." Sasuke spoke lowly, not lowering his sword and not releasing Sakura. She could simply _feel_ the intensity of their glares on one another and it was almost suffocating.

"I'll give you an hour," Kakashi spoke stepping back and lowering his kunai, "But depending on what you have to tell me, that's all of the time you get from me."

Sakura nodded fervently. She wouldn't need more than an hour before she had him convinced; _hopefully_ of course. "Yes, yes thank you." But Sasuke still did not release her. Turning her head upward she looked at his face, finding a stern, angry expression as he glared at Kakashi with red eyes. But he it wasn't his normal sharingan he had activated.

 _Mangekyou sharingan_ , she remembered Kabuto pointing it out. Kakashi would likely know what that entailed, and judging by her sensei's reaction to Sasuke's changed eyes, it wasn't a good thing.

But in the blink of an eye he released her roughly, causing her to stumble slightly and turned around, walking away. "Let's go." He spoke quietly, jumping from the rooftop and disappearing down below to the streets.

Standing up straight she immediately threw herself at Kakashi, wrapping her arms tightly around his midsection, unable to hold back her sobs. "I'm so happy to see you," she cried into his own drenched cloak, "I'm so, so happy."

"Sakura, look at me," he spoke the words so quietly she struggled to hear them, "you need to tell me now, while he's not here. Are you in any danger?" She'd never seen such a severe, worried expression on her sensei's face before.

Sakura shook her head, "Not with Sasuke, no. He hasn't hurt me, I'm not a prisoner, I swear." Lifting her soaking wet sleeve she wiped at her face, as if it would hide the tears more than the rain already was. "We have a… an arrangement. But Danzo," her voice shook, "I'm in danger because of him."

Kakashi held her close and she could hear him swear under his breath. "Come on," he pulled back, keeping one arm wrapped over her shoulders, "let's get you out of the rain."

She grabbed the edge of his cloak tightly, so relieved that Kakashi was here and they'd found him and her odds of surviving and maybe even successfully killing Danzo were steadily increasing. She could only pray to whatever gods were listening that he'd be exactly what they needed.

Her life, and the lives of all her friends, were on the line.

* * *

The inn that they found was warm. A large wide room with a fireplace in the corner and plenty of extra blankets was more than Sakura expected when they'd walked into the dilapidated-looking inn on the outskirts of the city. The floors were wooden, the blankets were soft, and the pieces of furniture in the room looked almost new.

Wet cloak left forgotten on the ground, Sakura currently sat in front of the fireplace, trying to collect as much heat as possible; at least enough to stop her from shivering.

Kakashi never strayed too far from her side, even now, leaning against the wall beside the fireplace, arms crossed. His eyes flickered from her, to Sasuke, to his teammates and then would end up back on her. He was incredibly tense and Sakura knew exactly why.

"Where's your headband?" He asked her quietly as Sasuke's team shuffled around the room noisily.

She swallowed thickly. She didn't want to say it out loud, that she had defected, that she was—by all means—a rogue ninja, but she knew that she had to be one-hundred percent, completely honest if she wanted Kakashi to help.

"It's in the village," she mumbled, pulling the blanket tighter around her and staring into the fire. "I left it there. I couldn't take it with me."

"So you left." Sakura didn't want to look up at him, didn't want to see the disappointment that she was sure he had in his eye. "Okay."

She blinked and looked up at him finally. "Okay?"

He simply nodded at her. "Okay. You're a smart girl, Sakura. I know you have your reasons."

"I need your help," she pleaded quietly, "I need you to help me, Kakashi-sensei. I'm sorry I—I had to go. I had to leave. I need to help the village, it's in danger I just I _know_ it is!"

"I know."

She blinked her tears away and looked at him, confused.

"What do you know?"

Sakura would've jumped if she wasn't so used to Sasuke appearing out of nowhere all of the time. She looked over her shoulder, finding him standing a couple of feet behind her, staring at Kakashi with an unreadable expression.

"Perhaps not enough that you two do," Kakashi spoke, "But enough to know that you're right Sakura. The village is in danger with Danzo around."

Shooting up onto her feet, leaving her blanket behind on the ground, she stared at him, completely shocked. "Then… then why are you here? He sent you here for a mission right? To get rid of you? Why are you going along with it all!? Why didn't you stay? Why—"

"Sakura," Kakashi pushed off of the wall and approached his two ex-students, "I'll tell you what I know, but you need to calm down. Give me time to explain." He looked over her head toward Sasuke and Sakura watched his gaze harden. "But first I want you to tell me what's going on. Why are you two together? I need to know what arrangement you two have."

When several seconds passed and Sasuke remained silent, Sakura answered for him. "Sasuke-kun wants Danzo gone, too."

Kakashi didn't seem convinced. "And why would that be?"

And then Sakura's mouth ran dry. She couldn't say it. She couldn't tell him about how it was Danzo's fault everyone Sasuke had once known and loved were dead.

"He is responsible for the massacre of my clan." Sasuke spoke finally. Sakura could hear the vitriol in his tone despite his face remaining entirely neutral.

Kakashi's eye widened as he dropped his hands to his sides. "What do you mean?"

"I mean exactly what I said. Danzo and the rest of the council ordered Itachi to decimate the clan. They were orders, from Konoha."

"That's… how do you know this?" Kakashi eyed Sasuke skeptically, trying to choose his words carefully.

"I have my sources," he spoke cryptically. "Believe me or don't, but I would have no other reason to target Konoha's council. If they hadn't killed my clan they would've never been a thought in my head."

And Sakura agreed with him fully. Although she had been raised to respect the council and never question their judgement, she had never once actually thought of them as people who could do vile things. As a child they had merely been nothing more than a concept to her.

"So you're working with Akatsuki to get more revenge?" Kakashi asked, standing straight and watching Sasuke with a doubtful look.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Akatsuki?" She turned toward Sasuke. "Who in the Akatsuki are you working with?" This was something Sasuke had _completely_ left out when they'd made their deal with one another and when she'd began to follow his team. She suddenly felt betrayed.

"Konan had mentioned that Akatsuki's leader would probably get in touch with you, but I was hoping she was wrong."

"Who's Konan?" She glanced at Kakashi. "What are you talking about?" She asked, turning back toward Sasuke.

She watched as he clenched his jaw shut tightly, his glare severe. "I am not working with them."

"So _for_ them, then."

Sasuke activated his mangekyou sharingan in an instant, taking a step forward toward their old sensei. Without thinking, Sakura turned, placing her hands against his chest, as if she could stop him from attacking if that's what it came down to. But to her surprise, Sasuke stopped abruptly, her fingertips pressed firmly against him, gently holding him in place. "Stop," she muttered to him, unable to tear her eyes away from his eyes.

"I am not affiliated with the Akatsuki," he spoke slowly. Sakura held in a shiver at the deep sound of his voice, the threat implied underneath his words. "If you're taking information from Konan then you have more connection to the Akatsuki than I do."

"Not likely. We both know she's defected."

If Sakura was thinking of the same woman they were talking about, then she was glad this Konan was on their side; Sakura won't soon forget the way the paper-winged woman tore through the streets of Konoha like a tornado out of hell on that day so many weeks ago. She'd never asked Naruto directly, but judging from what she'd heard, they owed it to her friend that the woman had suddenly disappeared from the terrorist organization.

Kakashi ended the silence with a firm question. "Why do I have information that you're working alongside Madara?"

"Wait," Sakura turned back toward Kakashi, still keeping her hands against Sasuke's chest, "Madara's Akatsuki?" She turned back toward Sasuke. "What the hell is going on?" She asked him, her confusion turning to impatience. "You never once mentioned being around Akatsuki, or that _Madara_ was Akatsuki—"

"Whether or not Madara is in the Akatsuki means nothing," he snapped at her. "I am not in the Akatsuki. I do not do their bidding. I am not their ally." He stepped back, Sakura's hands falling back toward her sides. "I don't take orders from anyone."

For a long moment, Sakura stood there, watching the two men glare at one another. Her eyes fluttered around the room and she was surprised when she noted the Karin, Juugo, and Suigetsu had disappeared. Sakura supposed that they'd return once their talk with Kakashi was finished, but for some reason as she wished at least Juugo was still there. She wouldn't put it past the two sharingan wielders she was standing between to begin to fight.

She hadn't known when Kakashi had pulled his headband upward and activated his own mangekyou sharingan—probably after Sasuke had activated his—but they now stared intensely at each other, as if waiting for the other to back down first.

Kakashi was the first to turn off his mangekyou.

Relaxing his stance he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck tiredly as he shook his head. "Do not make me regret swapping information with you." He glanced toward Sakura, "I trust you, Sakura. And I know you trust Sasuke, but I don't." He turned his attention toward Sasuke. "If this information gets to the Akatsuki, you're no longer an ally and I'll have no choice but to kill you."

"As if you could," Sasuke replied dryly. "Fine. Now tell us what you know."

"You first," he instructed as he backed up before sitting in a nearby chair. Lifting a leg, he propped his ankle against his other knee and leaned back, as if waiting for them to talk. "Like I said, you probably have more information than I do. I can add on to what you have when you're done."

Sasuke looked irritated but Sakura didn't give him the chance to snap back at him.

"What do you want to know?" She asked, stepping fully away from Sasuke to sit back down in front of the fire, facing the two men. "Because frankly, I don't know where to begin."

"How long have you been out of the village?"

Quietly, she thought to herself, trying hard to piece together her time since she'd departed Konoha. "Three weeks now."

"Why did you go to Sasuke?"

"I didn't—I mean it wasn't on purpose." Despite her frustration at the assumption, she knew that he was simply going off of what he thought was likely—what _everyone_ had apparently thought was likely—and that she'd left to immediately search out Sasuke. Her face flushed red and she frowned, thinking of how little the people in her life really knew her, if it always ended up coming down to Sasuke-kun.

They must've really thought she was a shallow, stupid girl, and the idea upset her more than she thought it would.

"I ran into him while I was escaping ANBU." She spoke confidently, blinking back frustrated tears and hoping no one could tell how upset she was. "I had been travelling alone and Naruto and the others had found me and I—I incapacitated them and then ANBU attacked and they took Naruto and Hinata by _force_ , and—and Sai was there and he helped me 'cause he _must_ know and then I ran and found Sasuke-kun and—and," she swallowed thickly as she attempted to regulate her breathing, "and he told me the truth and now—well, now we're going to kill Danzo together."

It was the shortened version of what had happened, but it was all that was necessary in that moment.

Kakashi nodded once. "And who are the others?"

"My team." Sasuke spoke, folding his arms over his chest.

"So they follow your orders?"

Sakura could immediately tell by the twitch in his brow that the question did not sit well with Sasuke. "I do not force them to do _anything_ ," he clarified, a hint of annoyance in his voice, "they don't do anything they don't want to."

"Right," Kakashi said, not concealing the fact that he didn't for a minute believe Sasuke's words. Sakura watched as Sasuke's form stiffened further—she was surprised he _could_ get more tense than he already was—and quickly changed the subject.

"They're sending all of you away," she blurted out, allowing the warmth of the fireplace to warm her back. "All of you special jonin. It's on purpose, isn't it?"

Kakashi nodded. "Yeah. Danzo has always been a very dark presence in the village—we've always known that. And when he immediately took control and we started getting missions, we knew that something was wrong."

"Why?" Sasuke asked, voicing Sakura's own thoughts out loud. "Why not just kill you?"

"Executing dozens of shinobi of our skill set would be nearly impossible. Even with ANBU assistance. And using dirty politics to indict us would be too complicated to achieve. Sending us on these missions for an indefinite amount of time is… the _neater_ option. And it makes covering his tracks a breeze."

"Have you had any contact with Konoha at all?" She hoped the desperation in her voice wasn't too obvious, but she didn't care too much if it meant Kakashi had answers for her.

"Not officially, no. But I have my ways." When Sakura saw the mischievous glint in his eye, she felt her excitement grow. "Pakkun has been my unofficial messenger. My link to all that's going on in Konoha, if you will."

Sakura scrambled over toward Kakashi, stopping only to kneel before him. "What have you heard? Is the village okay? What about Naruto? Have you heard anything about him recently? My parents are okay, right?"

"Sakura," he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, okay? I can only address one thing at a time."

"At least tell me about Naruto, nothing bad has happened to him, right?"

Kakashi sighed. "I knew that your teammates and friends had been sent to retrieve you. And when most of them came back incapacitated—I'm assuming by _you_ —Pakkun paid closer attention." He paused for a few seconds, glancing at Sakura before averting his eyes. "He doesn't know where Naruto is. Or Hinata for that matter."

Sakura's heart sank immediately, worst-case scenarios springing to mind. "No," she whispered, letting herself fall back slightly, so she was sitting on her feet, " _no_."

"So what? Are they dead?"

With the nonchalance Sasuke asked his question with, Sakura immediately turned around and glared at him, tears threatening to fall. " _Stop it,_ " she hissed angrily, "they aren't dead. There's no way." She turned back to Kakashi and dropped her glare. "They aren't, right?" Her voice broke as she stared into her sensei's face, noting the saddened expression he held.

"I don't think so. He wouldn't harm Naruto—not with the kyuubi inside of him—and I doubt he'd be stupid enough to kill Hinata. He'd have to deal with Hiashi and the rest of the Hyuuga if that happened."

"So they're still alive?"

"Possibly," he spoke quietly, "but again, I don't know for sure."

All he had to offer her was a sense of false hope, but at this point in the game she'd take any hope she could get. She'd never known desperation like this before in her life.

God, she missed her old life.

"What other information do you have?" Sasuke asked. "What's Danzo doing?"

"The last I spoke with Pakkun was three days ago. I'm not scheduled to summon him again for another day and a half. We have to be extremely cautious since what we're doing is technically treason."

"And what do you plan on doing?" Sasuke asked, cocking an eyebrow. "Just spying on them from a distance? Watching Danzo take apart your precious village?"

Even though Sasuke words were meant to taunt Kakashi, the man surprised them by smiling at them behind his mask, the corner of his eye crinkling in amusement.

"Oh, no." He chuckled. "I don't just have a link to Konoha. I've been communicating with the Jonin all across the nations. Of course, summoning and reverse summoning back and forth along huge expanses of land isn't simple, but it's the safest method of communication we have." He cracked his neck, stretching his arm slightly as he spoke. "But don't worry, we're handling this in our own way."

"Which is…?" Sakura asked, surprised and elated at his revelation.

"We're planning a coup."

Hearing the words spoken loud and clear did nothing to ebb her confusion. She almost asked Kakashi to repeat himself, but it was unnecessary.

"Do you think that's possible?" She whispered, suddenly afraid. Her friends were back in Konoha. Her family. Staging a coup d'état was dangerous, and if they went through with it, people would die.

"Yes," he answered her question with as much seriousness as he could, "it won't be pretty, but it can be done."

"You're going to get the village destroyed in the process." Sasuke spoke critically. "Aren't you trying to protect your village?"

"Buildings can be rebuilt, it's the villagers we're worried about." Kakashi shot a slightly irritated look at Sasuke before looking back to Sakura. "We know there are going to be casualties, but it has to be done. Unless," he glanced at the both of them and leaned back in his chair, "you two have any better ideas."

Sakura shook her head. "It just… I don't know." She frowned, curling in on herself slightly. "I don't like the idea."

"Neither do we," Kakashi said, "but if we can't think of anything else…"

Sakura understood. Something had to be done.

"But it would help immensely if we could prove Danzo's crimes. Sasuke, you have a big accusation here. You'd need to prove it."

Sakura watched as Sasuke's fists clenched. "Just ask them. Danzo, the council. They know all about it. Planning a coup is what got my clan murdered. I don't know why you guys would be naïve enough to think it would work in your favor."

Kakashi listened intently to Sasuke and Sakura could tell that despite his composed demeanor, her sensei was still reeling from the revelation. "No one that I knew was aware of a coup."

"The only reason they knew was because Itachi was a double agent. He was the reason the council found out in the first place. But it couldn't be stopped and to avoid a civil war, they decided to decimate my clan. The council and even the Sandaime are responsible for the massacre."

Kakashi ran a hand through his hair. "But we need _proof_ Sasuke. In order for the aftermath of the coup to go well—and that's assuming that it _will_ —we have to have a valid reason to remove him. Something incriminating that we have physical evidence of."

"That's what I have," Sakura spoke up, standing once more and moving herself in between them slightly. She could feel Sasuke growing more unstable every second that their conversation continued, and she knew it was better to jump in sooner than later. "I can prove that he killed Tsunade."

"Physical, undeniable evidence?"

"Yes," she spoke with confidence. "Medical reports, ANBU guard schedules, and video surveillance."

Kakashi perked up at that. "Video surveillance?" She nodded. "I didn't know there were cameras in the Hokage offices."

"Not many people do. Tsunade had them put in about a year into being Hokage. Only Shizune and I knew. At first they were put there because she was getting frustrated about her sake going missing," Sakura allowed her a little half-smile at the memory, "but they remained after that and I took charge of keeping them working and swapping the tapes out. I don't know why I did it, Tsunade never asked me and she stopped caring after a few months, but it made me feel important at first." She shrugged, spacing out slightly. "I never thought I'd catch her murder on tape."

"Do you have them with you?" Kakashi leaned forward slightly, at full attention.

"I have the originals kept with me, all sealed away in a scroll. I also have multiple copies hidden around the village. It would be incredibly unlikely for them all to be found."

When Kakashi looked at her fondly, giving her a gentle look, he sighed. "You did good kiddo. That's just what we need." He then looked around her at Sasuke. "We'll find evidence of the massacre after all of this is said and done, Sasuke. It's not that I don't believe you, but no one else will. We'll take back control, find evidence, and try the council. Either way, your clan will get the justice it deserves."

Sakura stiffened at the mention of trying the council, knowing that it was in no way Sasuke intention of letting anyone that had anything to do with the massacre live. She knew he wasn't about to mention it either, and Sakura felt guilty for not speaking up.

 _It's for Tsunade,_ she continued to tell herself, quieting her conscience.

"There's more," she spoke, reaching into her shirt and retrieving Sai's message to her, "I don't know if this will work, but," opening it she lifted it toward the fire and hoped the light or the heat—or perhaps both—would help reveal the message. It didn't take more than a few seconds before the invisible ink appeared and she smiled. "Sai gave this to me when ANBU attacked me." She turned it toward Kakashi so he could see better before handing it to him.

Lifting his headband again, Kakashi read the message with both eyes, most likely memorizing the entirety of it with his sharingan. "Sai gave this to you?" Sakura nodded. "Do you know what this is?" He asked, pointing to the map that seemed to be what the paper had started off as.

Sakura shook her head, glancing at Sasuke over her shoulder to see him looking just as clueless as she did.

"It's the Land of Iron."

Sakura frowned. "I've never heard of it."

"That's because it's not a ninja village."

"Samurai." Sasuke spoke.

Kakashi nodded. "You've heard of it?"

"Passed by it once while travelling." Sakura wasn't surprised when he didn't elaborate. "It's not close."

"Okay so what about it?" Sakura crossed her arms and bit her lip.

"Danzo will be in Iron Country soon. I don't know how soon, but there's going to be a Kage Summit to discuss the Akatsuki." He scratched at his mask. "It's the most recent information Pakkun's given me, and probably some of the most important."

"What about attacking him there?" Sakura asked. It would be the perfect opportunity. Away from the village so no one would be hurt, and with all of them plus the jonin Kakashi was in contact with, it should be a breeze.

"Can't. We don't know the exact date they'll be there and we lack other vital information. Also, it wouldn't be smart to attack one Kage with others present. Going against Danzo is one thing, going against Danzo and multiple Kage will be nearly impossible."

Sakura sighed out of frustration. Well, that idea was shot down quickly.

"His absence is good for us though. With Danzo gone it'll be easier and safer for Pakkun to gather information."

Well, that was a plus she supposed. It was still disappointing that a perfect opportunity was slipping through their fingers. Pushing the frustrating thoughts aside she looked back toward the message. "I don't know what it means when it says thirty days after the solstice, but that date has to be important somehow," she spoke, shuffling her feet as she frowned.

Kakashi nodded in agreement, "I'll see what information about that date that I can find." He then let out a breath of air, shaking his head. "He must've gone through a lot of trouble to get some of this information. That's incredibly dangerous for him to do."

Sakura knew and didn't even nod in confirmation. Sai would be killed immediately if Danzo knew what he'd done. She could only hope that he hadn't been found out yet. She prayed he was still alive.

"We know where his allegiance lays at least." She spoke confidently, accepting the note back as Kakashi lowered his headband once more. "That means that there could be more ANBU against Danzo's policies, too."

Kakashi nodded, thinking hard to himself. "I doubt there's a way we can find out without being exposed, but it's a good thing to know. Having even a few ANBU on our side could help everything be much easier than it would be originally." After a long, tense silence, he spoke up again, "So Sasuke, where exactly does _your_ allegiance lie?"

"Nowhere," he spoke without hesitation. "I don't hold loyalties to anyone. Not to Madara, not to Akatsuki. I follow my own lead. That's it."

Sakura could tell that Kakashi hardly believed him, and she understood to an extent. For Sasuke to be in contact with Madara and associated—however reluctantly—to Kabuto, that wasn't something that could be taken lightly or overlooked.

"I can't tell you anything more about the coup," he spoke decisively. "Not now at least. Sakura," she nodded, giving him her full attention, "I want you to stay with me. Whether the rest stay is their choice. But you need to stay with me. You said ANBU is after you? We—the other jonin here and I—can protect you. That way when we put things into motion you can come back to the village with us, we can regain control, expose Danzo, and things will go back to normal."

Hearing his plan was incredibly relieving, and made it feel as if an incredible weight had been lifted from her chest. Letting out a breath of air, allowing for some tension escape her, she allowed her shoulders to slump and nodded. This was exactly what she needed. Finally, things were going to be okay. Her defection hadn't been pointless, and with her actions validated so thoroughly, tears sprang to her eyes.

But before she could speak, she was cut off.

"We'll consider it," Sasuke spoke firmly, shocking Sakura when he grabbed her wrist and pulled her toward him slightly. Caught off guard by the motion, Sakura almost stumbled, turning and clinging to him in order to keep herself on her feet.

She didn't even stop herself when she asked in a low voice, "What on _Earth_ are you doing?"

But Sasuke disregarded her question. "I'll talk to my team about it and we can give you an answer in the morning." He didn't release her wrist, but he did loosen his hold, perhaps to make it so that she wouldn't panic. Sakura wasn't sure, but she needed to find out what he was doing.

Turning toward Kakashi she sent him a small half-smile and nodded. If she could get Sasuke and his team to agree, it would give them the edge that they needed. "I'll talk to him, sensei."

Kakashi nodded and stood. "I'll be back at sunrise for your answer. That gives you a few hours to talk it all over." He smiled down at Sakura, "I'm sure that's all the time you need."

She smiled back, the comfort of his presence still borderline-overwhelming for her. Pulling away from Sasuke for a few seconds, she leaned forward and wrapped her arms tightly against him, sighing as she embraced him. "Thanks, Kakashi-sensei."

As he hugged her back she felt as calm as she had since before the Akatsuki had attacked Konoha months ago. Things would be okay, she just had to trust her sensei and hope things went well. A coup wouldn't be easy to pull off, but they could do it.

Within minutes, Kakashi was gone and Sakura was left alone with Sasuke once more. Turning toward him, she pulled a curious look on her face only to find that he wasn't looking at her. Instead he was staring into the fire, completely disregarding her. The crackling of the fire was the only noise in the room besides the soothing sound of rain lightly hitting the windows. It would be incredibly calming if it weren't for the fact that they'd just talked about planning a coup d'état to overthrow the current Hokage.

In the back of her mind she wondered where the rest of the team was, but the thought was easy to push aside. The way Sasuke was staring into the fire was concerning her. Usually when he thought about things intently like this, he had an almost blank look on his face.

As the fire reflected off of his dark eyes she could see the emotion in them.

Taking a step toward him, she lifted a hand slowly and placed it on his shoulder. "Sasuke-kun?"

"We can't stay," he spoke, not removing his gaze from the fire.

Sakura bit her lip. She'd feared that his response would be that, but she tried hard to hide her disappointment. She told Kakashi she'd talk to him, and she would.

"It's smart," she spoke softly, "we have a better chance at pulling this off with Konoha on our side."

"If we stick with them and participate in the coup, do you really think they'll let us kill Danzo or even the elders?"

There was silence for a long moment, the fire continuing to crackle before them.

"What are you saying?" She spoke slowly, attempting to place the pieces together, but she knew she was missing a vital piece of information.

"Kakashi won't let you get anywhere near Danzo. That's what. You aren't even going to get a glimpse of him, let alone get a shot at fighting him if Kakashi has it his way."

He was right, and the realization that she would get what she wanted, only indirectly, made her more frustrated than she thought it would. She hated Danzo. More than Kakashi, more than the rest of Konoha's shinobi, probably not more than Sasuke, but _damnit_ , she deserved to be the one to take him down. And she knew Sasuke was right. She would never get the chance if she stayed in Ame.

She was nothing more than a chuunin with no outstanding characteristics outside better-than-average medical ninjutsu abilities. No way she'd be allowed to fight Danzo.

"Come with us." His voice pulled her out of her thoughts and when she looked at him again, he was finally staring at her.

That caught her off guard. For a moment she opened her mouth and closed it a few times before finding her voice, "I—I can't." And she _couldn't_. She'd finally gotten what she wanted. She was with Kakashi, she had the help she'd sought out when she'd began her journey almost a month ago. Everything that she'd left Konoha for was currently resting in her hands. She'd be _stupid_ to let this opportunity slip through her fingers. "I—why would you want me with you guys anyways? It makes more sense just to leave me here."

She had him there, and she _knew_ it. There was no edge she offered them. Nothing to contribute other than the plus of having another medic on the team, but Karin appeared capable enough to fill the role on her own. He had nothing more to lure her with.

Or so she thought.

He moved slowly, giving her more than enough time to back away or avoid the contact, but when he reached out toward her with rough hands, one wrapping around her waist, the other trailing along her neck before letting his fingers run through her hair, pausing as he held the back of her head.

She should move, she knew it. She should step back, disentangle his fingers from her hair, deny his request and go after Kakashi. It wasn't just the better choice, it was _smart_.

But that was her problem. She wasn't as smart as everyone thought. She was selfish, foolish, and in way over her head. She always had been. Sakura had dreamed of being held like this by him for as long as she remember, and a part of her knew that she'd be stupid to pass up the opportunity.

 _So stupid._

He leaned in slowly, watching her carefully, as if to witness any other reaction other than acceptance.

She held her ground and closed her eyes before his lips met hers.

The kiss was soft at first, nothing like their first kiss all those nights ago. Instead of his hand gripping her neck roughly, he cradled her head softly, fingers moving softly through her hair as he moved his lips against hers.

Not knowing what to do with her own hands, she lifted them and rested them on his shoulders, holding tightly as she tilted her head slightly. This kiss was neater, their teeth didn't click together and there was a noticeable lack of unbridled hunger.

Sasuke was being gentle with her, and the thought made her knees quiver and shake.

When he pulled her against him, kissing her a bit harder—it was hardly noticeable, but Sakura couldn't miss the increase of pressure—he brushed his thumb against the bare skin between her shorts and her shirt. The gasp was involuntary as she broke the kiss and moaned softly. She was dizzy as he placed chaste kisses against her neck and across her jawline.

"Come with us," he growled quietly against her neck.

Sakura gasped again. His words were so deep that it shook her to the core. Warmth began to spread through her and she knew that there was no way she could put up a fight like this.

"Sasuke-kun… I…"

Cutting her off, he captured her lips once more, kissing her harder this time and pulling her closer against him. In the back of her head she knew that this wasn't fair, that she was being manipulated, but god did this persuasion feel so, _so good_.

When he slipped his hand beneath her shirt, fully pressing his hand against her bare skin, he moved his hand upward slowly, stopping at the edge of her bindings before running down her back again.

Moaning again, his name slipped through her lips. Moving her hands from his shoulders, she wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and kissed him harder.

"Come with us," he whispered again in between kisses. With he lightly pulled at her lower lip with his teeth, she let out a squeak. "Come with _me_."

Sakura knew she was a goner.

* * *

Leaving the Hidden Rain within the hour wasn't just disappointing to Sakura, but to all of them. They were tired and hadn't even gotten the chance to rest their eyes for a moment before Sasuke had tracked everyone down and ordered them to gather their things.

After several minutes of very persuasive kissing, Sakura had finally agreed in a haze of passion and want. The moment Sasuke had gotten her verbal agreement, he'd broken their kiss, whispered "good" and left the room in search of the rest of their team.

Here they were, no more than twenty minutes later, running back through the rain and out of the village as quickly as they could.

Sakura knew there was no way they'd get out undetected but she didn't know if they'd be stopped or not.

As they moved she tried hard to ignore the feeling of eyes on her back. Eyes that she knew were no doubt filled with disappointment.

 _She_ was the one almost disappointed when Kakashi didn't stop them. Her hope that he'd intervene was what she'd been counting on, but when he stayed hidden amongst the shadows, her heart ached terribly in her chest.

Convincing herself that this was the right idea was going to be nearly impossible.


	8. Chapter 8

They were two days from the Land of Iron when they came across an unexpected obstacle.

When Madara appeared out of thin air in front of her, she nearly squeaked out of surprise as she literally ran _through_ him. Catching herself on the branch of a tree, she spun herself around and righted herself just in time for the rest of their team to direct their attention toward the masked man.

"Careful," he'd goaded, humorless smirk evident in his voice after she'd stumbled past him, "I don't want you to hurt yourself now."

"What do you want?" Sasuke demanded as he joined her on the same branch. "We're busy."

"I've noticed," he hummed, taking in their group's appearance. "Where are you kids off to?"

"Why does it matter?" Sasuke bit back, frustrated at this intervention. Sakura knew how badly he wanted to get to their destination and she understood fully; she was anxious to get going, too. They had no clue what time frame they had and acting quickly was their only option.

"I thought you were looking for the Copy Ninja?" He cocked his head to the side, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Found him. Now we're moving on." Turning, Sasuke gestured for everyone to follow him, and as he began to run again Sakura stayed close behind him. She didn't feel comfortable turning her back on the man, despite Sasuke seeming to have no problem with the action. And to her unease, it didn't take long before Madara appeared before them again.

"What?" Sasuke snapped finally, his impatience showing.

Sakura felt her anxiety increase when Madara glared at Sasuke behind his mask. She still knew little to nothing about this man and she had no clue what to expect from him. A fact that only made him more dangerous to her.

When his eye flickered to her, she was hardly expecting to be caught in another genjutsu.

Glancing around, noting their slightly-familiar location—dark, cold, water beneath her feet and a red moon above her head, the same location as the last genjutsu he'd placed her under—she let out a frustrated noise.

"What?" She spat out, trying to cover her unease. "Why? Why another genjutsu?"

"You're here." He spoke, as if shocked. Walking toward her, he looked her up and down as if examining her physical state.

Sakura blinked. "What?"

"They didn't leave you with Hatake Kakashi."

"Of course I'm not—" And when she heard the words, it suddenly clicked. "That's why you told them where Kakashi was." He was hoping she'd stay. He had _counted_ on it even. And the fact that she was there, still travelling with Sasuke and his team, must have put a dent in his plans.

Whatever plans he seemed to have.

He let out a light sound that almost sounded like a laugh. "You kids had your clue from your friend, you would've found him either way."

"You don't want me here." She was bewildered by the thought. It was as if he were taking her presence seriously.

It was as if she was a genuine threat.

"I don't want _any_ of Sasuke's teammates here."

"Then why focus on me?" She challenged, stepping forward as she brought a glare to her face. "Why not put anyone else in a genjutsu? You're focusing on me for a reason."

He chuckled, "You're smart, Sakura. But not as smart as you think."

"Okay," she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest and biting her lip. "If you don't want me here, then why not kill me?"

"If only it were that easy. If I killed you, Sasuke would try to kill me, and then I'd be forced to kill him." He sighed overdramatically. "And we can't have that. So now I have to figure out what to do with you."

His words made her blood run cold. Never before had she expected the leader of the Akatsuki to take an interest in her, and knowing that it was because of _Sasuke_ was almost impossible to believe. But with his admission, now she found herself perfectly confused.

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm not going to say much more, but I want to let you know this one thing." Suddenly, his voice was booming, echoing through the entire genjutsu. It took Sakura all her self-restraint not to cover her ears with her hands. But when she suddenly couldn't breathe, instead her hands gripped at her throat. "If you knew what was good for you, for your friends, for your _village_ , you'll remove yourself from the picture." Gasping for air, she felt herself fall to her knees, splashing in the shallow water below. She was starting to get dizzy and knew that if she didn't get a breath in soon, she'd pass out.

 _It's_ _a genjutsu_ , the logical part of her brain tried screaming at her, _it's only a genjutsu._ But the thought did nothing to alleviate her panic.

"If you get in my way any further, you will have to pay a price."

The world came rushing back to her before she knew it and as she gasped for air she was shocked to see none other than Sasuke staring her in the eyes, sharingan activated. The moment she began to cough and sputter, desperately taking air into her lungs, she watched as Sasuke directed his glare ahead of them.

That's when she realized he was holding her up, one arm around her waist, the other behind her neck and holding up her head.

Madara had really taken a lot out of her during the genjutsu; she felt so incredibly weak that despite the compromising situation they were in, she didn't have the energy to stand on her own two feet. All she could focus on was breathing.

 _Genjutsu_ , she had to remind herself, _it was only a genjutsu_.

But genjutsu or not, the effect that it had on her was very much real.

Sakura didn't notice that Sasuke was moving until he deposited her into Juugo's waiting arms.

"I'm okay," she found herself breathlessly mumbling to no one in particular, "I'm okay." But even with her words, she could hardly lift her head, instead allowing herself to rest against Juugo. "I'm okay."

After a couple minutes of silence, Sakura glanced up at Juugo, only to find him staring ahead with concern in his eyes.

"Where did they go?" She asked, finally having enough energy to lift her head and notice that both Sasuke and Madara were gone.

"To talk," he spoke quietly, apprehension in his voice. "They'll be back."

He was surprisingly gentle as he jumped to the ground, landing softly. "Let me see her," she heard Karin say. Juugo lowered her to the ground, leaning her back against a nearby tree so that she was propped up.

"Madara's fucking crazy," she heard Suigetsu mutter from somewhere behind them all and she couldn't help but laugh weakly.

"You're telling me," she mumbled as Karin kneeled by her side.

"Your chakra is low," Karin informed her as she rolled up her sleeve. "Here."

Sakura blinked at the woman, looking at her arm with confusion. "I don't understand."

"Just bite."

When Sakura focused once more on the pale arm before her, she could very faintly see overlapping scars marring Karin's skin. _Bite marks_ , she realized with shock. Hesitating, she finally opened her mouth and bit down when Karin pressed her skin against Sakura's lips.

The effect was immediate and seconds later Sakura opened her mouth as her eyes widened. "Woah," she looked at the redhead in awe. "What… how—"

"Don't ask," she mumbled, covering her sleeve abruptly and standing back up.

Sakura's mouth hung open, a silent 'o' on her lips. "Thank you."

She wasn't sure how, and she wasn't about to press the subject any further—Karin's discomfort was palpable—but her chakra was almost completely replenished and she felt completely energized.

Standing up shakily she inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. Oh yeah, she was _definitely_ going to ask about that little trick, not yet, but at some point.

"Where did they go?"

"To his," Suigetsu made a vague hand motion, "little dimension thing."

"You'll have to explain that one to me," she deadpanned, stretching her limbs out and cracking her neck.

"He has this… thing he can do with his sharingan. He sorta teleports to this weird dimension and then can teleport back. So they're uh, there right now." Leaning against a tree, swinging his sword lazily and effortlessly in front of him, he pouted, a tooth peeking out. "Hopefully they won't kill one another. But if they do," he shrugged, "whatever."

Shooting him a wry look she decided that one thing she disliked about Suigetsu was his complete nonchalance about certain things. One of the last things she wanted to hear was that Sasuke could be in some strange dimension fighting an Akatsuki member to the death.

Several anxious minutes later, the two Uchiha appeared quite literally out of nowhere, standing right before the group.

Upon sight of Madara looking directly at her, Sakura immediately took a step back, averting her eyes and staring instead at Sasuke. He was looking at her as well, and looked absolutely _furious_. Madara didn't seem much happier.

That couldn't have been good.

"Let's go," Sasuke commanded, sharingan still glowing and expression absolutely deadly. He turned abruptly and began to walk away, beckoning for them to follow.

Sakura didn't hesitate as she followed his lead, approaching quickly and remaining close as they stalked away.

"Don't forget what I said, Sakura," Madara called after them once they were out of sight.

The way he spoke her name sent shivers down her spine and made her hair stand on end, but when Sasuke placed a hand on her back, still staring ahead angrily, Sakura felt more grounded than she had since they'd been in Ame with Kakashi.

Sakura knew that until their mission was complete and Danzo was dead, this—being at Sasuke's side—was as safe as she was going to get.

Or at least she hoped.

* * *

It wasn't until later when Sakura realized that Sasuke wasn't just angry.

He was absolutely, absurdly _livid_.

So when he made a detour to a nearby village and informed them they'd be staying there for the night, no one even questioned him as to why; even though they were only a day and a half from the Land of Iron, they weren't dumb enough to advise him to keep travelling.

Sakura figured his team valued their lives too much for that.

When they reached an inn and Sasuke got his own separate room, leaving the rest of them alone in their own, she knew that something was wrong. More wrong than she'd originally thought if his team's expressions were any indicator.

"What do you think happened?" She asked quietly as she placed her bag on the ground and readied herself for a restless night. When she lifted her head she found Karin and Suigetsu exchanging a look and Juugo looking at her with an indecipherable expression of his own. "What?" She suddenly felt very self-conscious.

Juugo was the only person to give her any sort of reply. "You'll have to ask Sasuke about that."

Something in his tone told her that he had _some_ idea of what had happened, but when she realized she wasn't going to find out any information from them it just about made up her mind.

Standing up and not even bothering to change her clothes she swiftly exited the room, also not caring to knock when she opened the door to Sasuke's room and strode in. She was tired of tip-toeing around him. Especially now that she seemed to be in danger twice over.

It was one thing having a corrupt Hokage trying to wipe you out in order to ensure the continuation of his fascism, but the leader of the Akatsuki wanting you to disappear as well? Granted, Madara had admitted to her that killing her would only create a slew of new problems from him, but she was sure the thought had crossed his mind pretty regularly.

Finding Sasuke with his back to her, staring out of the window on the far side of the room, she immediately approached him.

"Sasuke, what happened back there?"

"Nothing," he spoke lowly, turning toward her and regarding her with a blank stare. It was as if he wasn't even surprised she'd stormed in. "Go back to your room."

She would've laughed if she wasn't so confused with the entire situation. "Madara said something didn't he?" Sasuke merely stared at her. "What did he say?"

They held eye contact for a long moment, Sakura searching for some hint of emotion in his dark eyes, but when he looked away, staring back out of the window, she grew frustrated.

"You should've stayed with Kakashi."

The words hit her like a punch to the gut. Just a few nights ago he'd been holding her, kissing her, almost begging her to stay with him, and now here he was telling her that she shouldn't have come. It hurt, badly. And now she didn't know _what_ was going on in his head.

"I'm sorry, but I'm confused here." She shook her head. Nothing was making sense anymore. "Are you telling me that's what he said, or are _you_ telling me that yourself?"

When he spoke again his words were firmer, "You should have stayed in Ame."

Sakura stiffened, defensiveness suddenly overcoming her. "You wanted me to come."

"Yeah," he scoffed, as if realizing how stupid of an idea it had been. And Sakura couldn't lie, that made it hurt worse. But instead of showing it, she decided to do the next best thing: bite back.

"So what?" She threw her arms up with tired exasperation before letting them flop back down to her sides. "Do you want me to leave? Should I go back to Ame?" She sighed, running her hands down her face. "I'm confused. Sasuke-kun, just tell me what you want, because I don't understand."

"You can't go back," his gaze sharpened, his words firm as emotion finally broke through his blank expression. "Not now."

"Why not?"

"If you go back he'll get you." Sakura's jaw almost dropped. "Kakashi doesn't know enough about him to keep you safe. If you went back now, there's no telling what he'll do."

"I—" fear suddenly encased her and her arms quickly wrapped themselves around her midsection, "Why? I don't understand. Why me?" She cried, taking several steps backward, panic flowing through her. "Sasuke-kun, please, just tell me."

"It's my fault."

She paused, surprised. "Then you can fix it, right?"

"No."

Sakura didn't know how long she'd been shaking, but when Sasuke glanced at her out of the corner of his eyes, frowning as he studied her, she suddenly became aware of the tremors. There was no lying to herself: she was scared. And as he watched her now, she knew that he was well aware. "Sasuke-kun…"

"He's trying to use you as leverage," he spoke through gritted teeth before turning toward her fully, "and now you're in danger because of me."

"Why me?" She asked again, desperate for an answer. Even though she was slowly starting to understand, she knew she had to hear it from his own mouth or she'd never thoroughly believe it.

He grabbed her faster than she could blink, pushing her against the wall with her wrists in his hands. Lifting her arms above her head, he leaned into her, pressing his nose against her neck as he inhaled deeply. His exhale was slow, trembling, and she could feel him shake his head slightly.

"You stupid, annoying girl," he rasped as he began to kiss her neck sensually. "Why," sucking the skin lightly, Sakura gasped, "do you think?" And when he suddenly captured her lips, she seemed to finally understand.

"Oh," she half-moaned between kisses, " _oh._ "

And as she pulled away for a few seconds she took that moment to look at him fully. The look in his eyes was so foreign to her. Something dark and gritty glazed over with a want that she could somehow recognize, despite never seeing it before.

He wanted her. The realization sprung to life as he resumed his attack on her neck, teeth grazing against her pulse before he'd suck the flesh there, no doubt bruising it.

He _wanted_ her.

Pulling her wrists free from his grip she lowered them, wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her. Fingers running through his hair she turned her head, forcing his lips to meet her own and kissing him with fervor.

 _He_ wanted _her_.

She didn't realize that his hands had moved until they were resting on her hips, and when he gripped them firmly she couldn't help but let out a moan, gasping against his lips. Wrapping one arm around her waist, he kept her close, and with the opposite hand he toyed with the waistband of her pants.

The moment that his fingers drifted below her clothes, swiftly and firmly cupping a bare hand around her sex, Sakura felt her knees grow weak. Never in her life did she think that the object of her fantasies—both innocent as well as intimate—would be touching her this way. Sure she'd imagined it, dreamt of it even, but there was no way that she would have been able to imitate the way it truly felt.

She squeaked, not breaking their kiss, and froze, hands still holding tightly around his neck. It wasn't until seconds later when she realized that he had stopped, too. And in that moment Sakura couldn't think of anything she wanted to happen _less,_ than for him to still his movements.

Moving her lips against his, reborn with a new, more urgent want, Sakura slowly moved her hips, grinding into his palm.

"S—Sasuke," she shakily forced his name past her lips, reluctantly breaking their kiss, "please." Pressing against him, she found herself desperate for some type of friction. She was so wound up, so completely blinded with lust that all she wanted was for him to _touch_ _her_. To help her find release. Anything to uncoil the knot that was building inside her belly.

When he finally began to move—first pressing against her more firmly, allowing her to grind into his palm, then by moving a couple fingers slowly against her lips—she swore she saw stars.

Head falling back limply against the wall behind her, Sakura was suddenly seized with pleasure unlike anything she'd ever encountered. And as Sasuke's fingers moved around her entrance, playing with her lips and the wetness that grew there, she gasped.

For a couple of minutes they remained in that position, Sakura pinned against the wall as she ground into Sasuke's hand. Slowly his hand moved faster, rubbing against her clit as his fingers massaged her entrance, causing her to buck her hips against him, the friction of their movements too sweet to let slip by. When she felt the coil inside her tightening more and more, she let out a cry, riding his hand as he kissed and sucked her neck, completely overwhelming her with sensations unlike any other.

"Sasuke," she cried, fingers digging into his shoulders as she struggled to stay upright, "Sasuke— _oh!_ " As she quickly approached her peak she felt him tighten his hold around her waist, capturing her lips within his own as if to swallow the sounds she was making as she found her climax. Rubbing his fingers against her, pace quickening, Sakura found herself engulfed in indescribable pleasure, her orgasm rippling through her as her toes curled and her legs gave way.

Sasuke held her in place, pulling her against him tighter as she came down from her high. Head lolling forward to weakly land on his chest, she was gasping, taking in shaky breaths as she felt the coherence return to her body.

Sakura didn't know how long they remained there—it could've been seconds, it could've been several minutes—but when she felt Sasuke remove his hand from her pants, her mind seemed to snap back into the present.

Opening her eyes she lifted her head to look him in the eye, questions already curled around the tip of her tongue, but when she noticed red tomoe staring back at her she swallowed her words.

And in the blink of an eye his sharingan were gone, instead she stared into his dark eyes, an indecipherable look displayed across his features. He stepped away from her then, releasing his hold on her and turning sharply away, his steps quickly carrying him across the room.

Stunned into inaction Sakura could only manage to readjust herself, fixing her pants and straightening out her shirt, brushing shaking fingers through her hair. Embarrassment was slowly creeping up and taking hold and Sakura couldn't help but feel disgustingly self-conscious in that moment.

"Sasuke?" The only thing she could think to do was call out to him weakly, eyes glued to his back where he stared out his room's window and into the night. Silently, she begged for him to turn around, to say something, or to shoot a glance in her direction. _Please_ , she wordlessly called across the room, hoping for him to acknowledge her, _Sasuke, please_.

She waited a few seconds, but when he did not reply the sharp sting of rejection overwhelmed her, drawing tears into her eyes. Only minutes ago he had been holding her, kissing her, touching her, and making her feel sensations that she's only eve dreamt of. Now, as he turned his back on her and ignored her presence totally, Sakura wondered if she was a fool for so easily allowing him to touch her like he did.

If this is how it was going to be, Sasuke indulging in her during moments of weakness and shutting her out immediately afterward, Sakura didn't think she wanted anything to do with it. Sure, she had only ever dreamed of kissing him the way she'd found herself doing over the past several days, and the way he'd touched her tonight put all of her darkest fantasies to shame, but she had not left to go on this mission to seek out Sasuke for these late night affairs.

She was not here for Sasuke, she bitterly reminded herself as she walked away, blinking back stubborn tears, she was here to help her village. To save her people. To bring a murderer to his knees.

She was not here to sit by idly and allow Sasuke to hurt her more.

Sakura only made it as far as the door, hand lifted to open it and slip away, when Sasuke's arms curled around her waist, stopping her in her tracks.

"Stay," he rasped, speaking lowly, his lips brushing against her ear. She shivered involuntarily, caught off guard by both his touch and his request. She couldn't even lower her arm, still reaching out for the door as he tightened his hold on her, pulling her firmly back against his chest.

She swallowed thickly then, conflicted as to what she should do. Seconds before she was completely set on leaving this room and pushing her reenergized feelings for him back down in her chest. None of this—what they were doing—was productive to either of their goals. And Sakura somehow _knew_ that Sasuke was keenly aware of this.

For the hundredth time that week, she cursed her fragility when it came to him.

"Why?" She still forced herself to ask, even as he began kissing her neck once more. Biting her lips she held in a groan, working hard to keep her voice steady. "You never did answer my question."

Sakura knew that was a lie. She knew that the moment Sasuke had grabbed her, pinning her against that wall and assaulting her lips with his own, he had answered her question explicitly.

He wanted her. Whether he _wanted_ to want her was an entirely different subject. But the truth of the matter was that he _wanted_ her, she knew it, and he seemingly had no idea how to handle that.

"You're trying to tell me," he murmured into her ear as he slowly turned her around in his embrace, stopping once she was facing him again, "that this," he leaned forward and sucked on her neck, letting his teeth graze against the flesh as he nipped at her, "doesn't answer your question?"

"What do you want, Sasuke-kun?" She couldn't help as her question ended on a squeak, hands reaching up and grabbing his shoulders in order to keep herself upright.

"I want a lot of things," he spoke lowly, kissing up her jaw and eventually taking her lips in his own again. "Revenge, mostly." With careful movements he unwrapped his arms from around her until his hands were once more resting on her hips. Deepening their kiss he squeezed her hips, pressing his own against her. It wasn't long before she was pinned between him and the wall, her own arms crawling up his body, pulling him closer, fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled him down further toward her.

"What else?" she gasped between kisses, trying to ignore the friction growing between them. She knew she needed to cling to this last shred of coherence until she heard what she wanted from him; she had to give herself at least that or completely forsake what was left of her pride. "What else do you want?"

"You know," he growled, taking her lower lip between his teeth and biting; not enough to draw blood, but enough to make her gasp.

He was fighting for dominance, for her complete and wordless submission. Her body screamed at her to give in, and oh god, did she want to. But she held strong, actively preventing herself from turning into putty in his hands.

If Sasuke wanted her he was not going to get the love struck girl who had fallen for him as children, helpless to his words and scorn. No, he was going to get the stubborn woman who would fight tooth and nail for the people she loved and for the things she wanted.

"Say it," she whispered, her words harsh and commanding. "What do you want?" With a fistful of his hair in her grip, she pulled back from him again, panting, and took in his appearance before her.

His eyes were half-lidded, something like passion—want, _need_ maybe?—swimming in his black eyes. His breaths were coming in short, quick pants and he had a light sheen of sweat on his forehead. As she watched him study her, she knew in that moment that she wanted him just as much as he wanted her.

"You," he growled the one word, confirming what she knew all along, and giving her just what she was looking for.

So when she kissed him again, reclosing the space between their faces again, she decided that this was it. She'd loved him for long enough, and if he was willing to give into this temptation, she'd gladly let him.

Now, she was playing for keeps.

Pulling her hands free she wasted no time in pushing his cloak off of his shoulders and finding the hem of his shirt, lifting it over his head and tossing it carelessly to the ground. Running her hands over his chest and abdomen, she almost couldn't believe what was happening, and as she took in his shirtless appearance, she felt the lust once more begin to grow steadily deep within her.

She wanted him. Badly.

Sasuke quickly reciprocated her motions, pulling her own shirt off of her. When his hands fluttered over her bindings, he made quick work of unfastening them, allowing them to unravel and fall to the ground in a heap. There was no time to feel self-conscious because as soon as her breasts were exposed, he was kissing and nipping at the flesh, and massaging them with his rough, calloused hands.

Gasping and moaning, Sakura almost couldn't keep herself on her feet as he licked and sucked at her skin. Eventually he kissed his way back up her chest, to her neck, and then eventually met her lips with his own once again. Pulling his head to her, Sakura kissed him fiercely, and when she felt him grab her hips and begin to run his thumbs under the waistband of her shorts, she gasped, a small squeak escaping her.

He was staring at her then, in that moment, as if gauging her reaction. And when it occurred to her that he was waiting, she placed her hands on his own and guided them downward, not breaking eye contact as slowly she helped him push her shorts down. It was bold, she knew, but she needed for him to know how badly she wanted this.

And when she was entirely bare, she shivered involuntarily. He must've mistaken it as a reaction to the temperature of the room though, because before she knew it he was leading them both toward the bed at the end of the room.

Nervously leaning back she scooted herself backwards as Sasuke crawled overtop of her, pinning her between him and the bed. And even though she wasn't cold, his body heat immediately warmed every part of her that he touched.

He let his hands flutter over her body for a few minutes, exploring every dip and curve, running his fingertips over every scar and mark. It wasn't until she opened her eyes when she noticed he had his sharingan activated. Whether or not _he_ knew that was the question, but as he memorized her body, hands wandering over every inch of her, she couldn't contain the moans and gasps that escaped her.

Sakura didn't see him rid himself of his pants, but when he lifted her legs and she felt his bare thigh press against her own, she gasped, gripping his shoulders tightly, suddenly tense. She didn't give him time to pull away though and fought through her nerves, using her leg to wrap around his backside, pulling him toward her.

Sasuke met her eyes as he scooted closer to her, spreading her legs with one hand and pushing her hair out of her face with the other. "Sakura," he gasped, the word seeming to come from somewhere deep in his throat. Running his hand up and down a pale thigh, he met her eyes, "do—do you still—" he hesitated with his words, whether seeking out the right ones or deciding whether to speak them at all, Sakura couldn't tell. "Are you still in—"

But he couldn't say it. As he kneeled before her, both of them entirely bare, high off of lust, ready to join as one, he couldn't verbalize the simple question. He didn't need to though; Sakura knew exactly what he was asking.

She took a moment to herself in order to simply watch him. He was almost unrecognizable like this, panting before her, sweat beginning to bead at his temples, red eyes glossed over with want. Ever since she'd run into him weeks before, Sasuke had been in a near-constant frenzy of erratic behavior and short-tempered madness. He'd been fluctuating between flashing glimpses of the boy she faintly recognized from their childhood and holding stubborn as the man that was ready to set the world on fire to get what he wanted. A wild combination she still couldn't quite figure out.

At some point between when she'd seen him last with Naruto—so cold and unemotional—and stumbling upon him in the woods, something had changed within him.

A fire had sparked inside of him and had begun to burn him from the inside out. In the back of her head she knew that it was only a matter of time before he burnt himself out fully. Sakura had no idea what to expect when that day came, but with no hesitation she made a choice. She would be there when it happened.

"Yes," she breathed, smiling at him with tears in her eyes, her sweat beginning to intermingle with his, "I am."

Leaning forward he began to kiss and suck her shoulder, "Say it," he demanded, his voice almost desperate, " _say it_."

"I love you," she gasped, the words falling from her lips easily, as if she'd been practicing them for him, for this moment. "I love you, Sasuke-kun."

And with that confirmation, he positioned himself at her entrance and, with as much self-control he could, pushed himself slowly inside of her.

There was no sharp pain as he entered her, much like she expected; just the strange, unfamiliar discomfort of being stretched wide. But she could hardly focus on that when her senses were completely overloaded with Sasuke.

As he laid his head weakly against her shoulder, she could smell his unique scent that vaguely reminded her of the forest. The sound of his panting was all she could hear, mixed with her own cries of pleasure, and as he lifted his head and they kissed once more, she could only taste _him_.

When he began to move, he could no longer focus enough to kiss her and instead kept his face pressed into her hair, his cheek resting over her shoulder and against the bed as he moved. Sakura wrapped her arms tightly around him, gripping his back tightly and feeling his muscles move under the skin as he began to move at a steady rhythm.

The feelings were enough to leave her whimpering beneath him.

All she could bring herself to say was his name, over and over and over again, as he pulled backward and pushed forward into her, harder and faster with each and every thrust. The sensations were incredible—almost blinding her senses with pleasure—and as she dug her fingers into his back she forced her hips upward to meet him with each stroke.

After a few minutes, Sasuke's pace began to pick up more and more, knocking his hips against hers harder and harder, until her weak, muffled cries were impossible to conceal.

"Say it again," he groaned into her ear as he fucked her into the mattress, "say it, Sakura."

"I— _ah_ —I love you, Sasuke-kun," she moaned desperately, trying so hard to keep up with his pace. "I love you. I love you."

"Sakura," he gasped, his speed increasing past the point where she could keep up, "I—I'm—"

And without giving him time to finish she pressed her lips into his, kissing him deeply as he reached his peak, moaning into her mouth as his thrusts grew erratic and he fell out of his rhythm. His thrusts continuing as he came, expending himself inside of her. He broke the kiss and groaned deeply, once more resting his head by hers as he gasped.

She held tightly to him, her arms wrapped around his shoulders and her head pressed against his chest. They were both panting, attempting to control their breathing as their energy began to ebb and the fires inside of them began to dim to a low burn.

Closing her eyes she willed herself to remain calm and hold onto her head. Still, his words were rushing through her mind, her anxiety beginning to increase as her lust died down. And without her passion blinding her, her panic at the situation resumed.

" _He's trying to use you as leverage, and now you're in danger because of me."_

Sasuke felt… _something_ for her; that was certain. Otherwise they wouldn't currently be in the predicament they were currently in, and her life wouldn't be in danger twice as much as it already was. The thought that Sasuke had feelings for her should've caused her to become elated and she should've been bursting with happiness at the revelation, but instead it only made her anxious.

Danzo wanted her dead, and now so did Uchiha Madara.

Some luck she had.

When Sasuke rolled off of her, being careful as to not collapse on her, he breathed out slowly. Sakura turned her head toward him slightly only to find him looking up toward the ceiling with a very peculiar expression. An expression far from the unbridled fury he'd been displaying under an hour ago. He looked calm, as if he'd come up with a plan, or perhaps accepted what was happening.

Watching him turn to look at her caused her heartrate to increase, and for the first time that night, she felt self-conscious. Before she could lift her arms to cover her chest, or seek out the edge of the blanket to drape over her bare body, Sasuke extended an arm toward her, and when she realized that he was inviting her into his arms, she almost froze.

Tears sprang to her eyes as she moved slowly toward him, and when he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close, she let out a shaky breath. Placing a palm against his chest, directly over his heart, she focused on the sound of his steady heartbeat, hoping that the noise would somehow lull her back into a semi-peaceful state.

"I'm sorry."

His apology caught her off guard, a strange thing to say when the two should've been leisurely lounging around in post-coital bliss. And when she lifted her head to try to look at him, he instead held her closer to him, tucking her head underneath his to perhaps keep her from seeing his face. But she understood what he was apologizing for without it needing to be explained.

"Is he going to kill me?" She asked, her voice coming out surprisingly steady, despite the fact that the topic was of her inevitable death at either one crazed man or another.

Sakura felt him shake his head and stiffen slightly. "No. He wouldn't do that. He's not that kind."

If death were the kinder option, Sakura hardly even wanted to know about the alternatives. Just the idea of being tortured made her stomach churn and her head feel dizzy.

"If he kills you, he has nothing. I just have to keep him from getting his hands on you. That's why you can't go back to Kakashi." He let out a shaky breath and Sakura was speechless at the emotion in his voice; she could only imagine what his face looked like.

 _This_ was her Sasuke-kun. This was the boy she remembered and fell in love with years ago. This boy, who had her wrapped in his arms, was the same, vulnerable, broken boy she knew. And she wasn't just scared for herself, but she was scared for the both of them.

"You have to stay with me." He spoke with finality. "You're not allowed out of my sight."

"I'm sorry." She genuinely didn't know why she apologized; she knew she'd done nothing wrong, but the thought of him shouldering all of this guilt onto himself made her feel awful.

He let out a short, sarcastic sound. "Shut up." He held her close, pressing his nose into her hair and inhaling. "If I were smart I would've left you with Kakashi. Or not kissed you. Or not have you here, like this." He trailed a hand down her back, lightly tracing her spine with his fingertips. She couldn't hold back her shiver. "This is a bad idea—a terrible one. Stupid, really. But if he's going to try and take you from me anyways," his nails gently raked up her back before he gripped the back of her neck, "then let him try."

Pulling her back slightly until she could see his face, she took in his appearance as quickly as she could, attempting to solidify this moment into her memory. His dark hair was a complete mess, sticking to his forehead and cheeks, and up close she could finally notice how much longer it had grown since she'd last seen him.

His eyes were dark, the sharingan no longer lighting up the room for him, and Sakura almost gasped at the emotion she could see reflected in them. She cherished the sight and tried to place as many emotions as she could distinguish. There was determination, lust, worry, and a glimmer of a warm, welcoming emotion that she couldn't quite place.

So as she pulled him toward her and kissed him hard, she concentrated hard on the warmth in his eyes, letting it fill her as she climbed on top of him, never once removing her lips from his.

* * *

 **A/N:** Hey guys. Long time no see.


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